Disaster Law Commons^™

Climate Change And The Threat To U.S. Jails And Prisons, Laurie L. Levenson

Villanova Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Plantain Cultivation In Puerto Rico: Its Inclusion In The National Crop Table Of The United States Department Of Agriculture’S Farm Service Agency, And Its Loss Compensation In Disaster Programs, Javier A. Rivera-Aquino

Journal of Food Law & Policy

If justice is to provide each person what they deserve, it seems plantain producers in Puerto Rico did not relish a just compensation for their farm losses after Hurricane Maria in 2017. The main culprit? Stale data. Farm Service Agency’s (FSA) Wildfire and Hurricanes Indemnity Program (WHIP) utilized plantain production data under the National Crop Table (NCT) 2017, which seemingly did not reflect up-to-date yield averages of Puerto Rico’s plantain farmers at the time of Hurricane Maria.

Gimme Shelter: Amending Fema's Enabling Legislation To Permit Citizen Suits For Failures In Disaster Recovery Efforts, Zachary R.M. Outzen

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

This Note argues that democratizing the disaster relief process through enabling citizen suits against FEMA to timely deliver housing relief assistance is one potential solution to the immense problem at hand. This Note provides an overview of FEMA’s obligations to survivors of natural disasters under both federal law and evolving interpretations of binding international law. This Note asserts that FEMA’s repeated failure to deliver necessary disaster relief aid to these survivors constitutes violations of these obligations. This Note will then assert that the issue underlying these failures (i.e., flawed administrative and bureaucratic processes) is analogous to similar failures by environmental …

Intangible Cultural Heritage: A Benefit To Climate-Displaced And Host Communities, Gül Aktürk, Martha B. Lerski

Publications and Research

Climate change is borderless, and its impacts are not shared equally by all communities. It causes an imbalance between people by creating a more desirable living environment for some societies while erasing settlements and shelters of some others. Due to floods, sea level rise, destructive storms, drought, and slow-onset factors such as salinization of water and soil, people lose their lands, homes, and natural resources. Catastrophic events force people to move voluntarily or involuntarily. The relocation of communities is a debatable climate adaptation measure which requires utmost care with human rights, ethics, and psychological well-being of individuals upon the issues …

Before Disaster Strikes: Preparing America To Be Disaster Resilient, Cole Hoyt

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

Major natural disasters in the United States are occurring more frequently and are causing more damage and destruction than ever before in the nation’s history. With the increased number and intensity of natural disasters, America’s failing infrastructure and current resiliency plan are inadequate to successfully prepare and respond to such catastrophic events. As a direct result, natural disasters in the United States cause scores of deaths and injuries, inflict billions of dollars’ worth of damage per disaster, and make it increasingly more difficult for Americans to recover and return to a sense of normalcy.

The World Health Organization (“WHO”), offers …

Trial By Water: Reflections On Superstorm Sandy, Thomas Maligno, Benjamin Rajotte

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Disaster Legal Tech: Strategies For Providing Legal Information To Survivors, Jeanne Ortiz-Ortiz, Jessica Penkoff

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

An Inflection Point For Disaster Relief: Superstorm Sandy, Danshera Wetherington Cords

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Compensating The Victims Of Japan’S 3-11 Fukushima Disaster, Eric A. Feldman

All Faculty Scholarship

Japan’s March 2011 triple disaster—first a large earthquake, followed by a massive tsunami and a nuclear meltdown—caused a devastating loss of life, damaged and destroyed property, and left hundreds of thousands of people homeless, hurt, and in need. This article looks at the effort to address the financial needs of the victims of the 3/11 disaster by examining the role of public and private actors in providing compensation, describing the types of groups and individuals for whom compensation is available, and analyzing the range of institutions through which compensation has been allocated. The story is in some ways cause for …

Enhancing Communication Between Scientists, Government Officials, And The Lay Public: Advancing Science And Protecting The Public's Welfare Through Better Multi-Stakeholder Interfacing, Clark J. Lee, Patrick P. Rose, Earl Stoddard Iii

Homeland Security Publications

No abstract provided.

Disaggregating Disasters, Lisa Grow Sun, Ronnell Andersen Jones

Faculty Scholarship

In the years since the September 11 attacks, scholars and commentators have criticized the emergence of both legal developments and policy rhetoric that blur the lines between war and terrorism. Unrecognized, but equally as damaging to democratic ideals—and potentially more devastating in practical effect—is the expansion of this trend beyond the context of terrorism to a much wider field of nonwar emergencies. Indeed, in recent years, war and national security rhetoric has come to permeate the legal and policy conversations on a wide variety of natural and technological disasters. This melding of disaster and war for purposes of justifying exceptions …

Katrina's Animal Legacy: The Pets Act, Marita Mike, Rebecca Mike, Clark J. Lee

Homeland Security Publications

This article discusses issues related to the federal Pets Evacuation and Transportation Standards Act of 2006 (PETS Act), which was signed into law in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Issues discussed in this article include:

1. Various problems concerning animal evacuations and sheltering that Hurricane Katrina brought to light;
2. Provisions of the PETS Act and related laws and policies which were developed in response to the tragedies brought about by Hurricane Katrina; and
3. Strengths and weaknesses of the PETS Act and recommends next steps to improve implementation of the PETS Act.

Mapping--The Missing Link In Reducing Risk Under Sara Iii, Ute J. Dymon

RISK: Health, Safety & Environment (1990-2002)

Dr. Dymon explains how maps can, e.g., hasten effective community responses to natural and artificial hazards and laments widespread failure to prepare and use hazard maps more extensively.