Law Commons^™

Implementing The Inflation Reduction Act: Progress To Date And Risks From A Changing Administration, Romany M. Webb, Martin Lockman, Emma Shumway

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (“IRA”) is the largest investment in climate change mitigation and adaptation in American history. The IRA appropriates more than $142 billion to carry out activities designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect against the impacts of climate change. This includes up to $37 billion in appropriations for federal loans and loan guarantees, and nearly $105 billion allocated for grants, awards, and other direct spending by federal agencies. In addition, the IRA creates and expands a number of tax credit programs designed to support a broad range of climate-related activities, including investments in clean …

Permit Proposals: Summary Of Recommendations, Luis Pablo Alvarez

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

All scenarios for meeting greenhouse gas reduction targets require faster deployment of renewable energy projects. However, the current permitting processes, while designed to ensure environmental and public safety as well as public participation, often delay progress. The challenge is to speed up renewable energy development without compromising environmental and community protections. This white paper by the Sabin Center reviews 15 reports from reputable institutions that identify steps to streamline the permitting process. These recommendations offer strategies to reduce time and costs in advancing renewable energy projects.

This report will be updated from time to time. Readers who identify errors in …

Removing Methane Via Atmospheric Oxidation Enhancement: The Legal Framework, Romany M. Webb, Martin Lockman, Korey Silverman-Roati

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

To achieve the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting the increase in global average temperatures to “well below 2 degrees Celsius,” and ideally 1.5 degrees Celsius, above pre-industrial levels, global greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions must reach net zero in the second half of the century. The global community is not currently on track to achieve net zero emissions. In fact, with the exception of a slight dip during the Covid-19 pandemic, emissions have risen steadily in recent years. This, together with the increasingly visible impacts of climate change, has prompted growing interest in the possibility of removing GHGs directly from the …

Cities, E-Commerce & Public Health: 3 Legal Pathways To Limiting Freight Vehicle Emissions, Amy E. Turner

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

In recent years, cities have become increasingly defined by e-commerce – the sprawling network of goods delivery from central warehouses to neighborhood distribution centers to residents’ front doors. This growing network of warehouses and the freight vehicles that serve them contribute significantly to a community’s greenhouse gas emissions and exposure to harmful pollutants like nitrogen oxides (NOx), carbon monoxide and particulate matter. Moreover, so-called last-mile delivery warehouses (or distribution centers) are proliferating, largely in low-income communities and communities of color, where residents are exposed to increasing traffic, pollution, and harmful health impacts.

While a handful of cities have pursued approaches …

Opposition To Renewable Energy Facilities In The United States: June 2024 Edition, Matthew Eisenson, Jacob Elkin, Harmukh Singh, Noah Schaffir

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Achieving lower carbon emissions in the United States will require developing a massive number renewable energy facilities at an unprecedented scale and pace. Although many renewable energy facilities are sited without any problem, local opposition often arises. This report updates and considerably expands three previous Sabin Center reports, published in September 2021, March 2022, and May 2023, which document local and state restrictions against, and opposition to, siting renewable energy projects, as well as energy storage and transmission projects that are closely tied to renewable energy generation. The time period covered by this report ranges from as early as 1995 …

Climate Litigation In The Global South: Mapping Report, Maria Antonia Tigre

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

In recent years, climate litigation has undergone a notable transformation globally, witnessing a surge in cases across diverse jurisdictions. While scholarly interest has predominantly focused on cases from the Global North, attention to litigation originating in the Global South has been more limited. Nonetheless, understanding the distinct legal grounds, remedies sought, and objectives of plaintiffs in the Global South is crucial. This report addresses this gap by providing a comprehensive insight into the current landscape of climate litigation in the Global South.

The report utilizes data from the Sabin Center’s Global Climate Change Litigation databases, which has seen an influx …

Shocking Financed Emissions: The Effect Of Economic Volatility On The Portfolio Footprinting Of Financial Institutions, Ilmi Granoff, Tonya Lee

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Many financial institutions are now calculating and disclosing their financed emissions, a class of metrics enabling these institutions to calculate the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions associated with investment and lending activities. These institutions have widely adopted the metric to estimate exposure to climate-related financial risk associated with GHG-emitting activities and to provide shareholders and investors a picture of how their financial activity impacts global climate change. Financed emissions metrics, despite widespread adoption, face two key methodological challenges: lack of comparability of outputs within and between portfolios, and vulnerability of calculations to portfolio volatility. Markets are naturally volatile, but the economic …

Climate Change And Human Health: A Synthesis Of Scientific Research And State Obligations Under International Law, Jessica A. Wentz

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

This report synthesizes the latest scientific research on the human health effects of climate change and discusses the legal implications of this research, specifically with regards to State obligations under international law. In doing so, the report seeks to provide insights on issues to be analyzed by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in its upcoming advisory opinion on the legal obligations of States with respect to climate change. It also seeks to enhance the capacity of judges, advocates, and governments to understand these issues in the context of current and future proceedings involving international law obligations related to climate …

Recommendations To Update The Ftc & Doj’S Guidelines For Collaborations Among Competitors, Cynthia Hanawalt, Denise Hearn, Chloe Field

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Existing joint agency guidance from the FTC and DOJ, “Antitrust Guidelines for Collaborations Among Competitors” was written in 2000 and is misaligned with the agencies’ focus on market power considerations and protecting the competitive process. This white paper seeks to provide a rationale and suggestions for revising the collaboration guidelines. We look to examples in other jurisdictions, with an eye to their treatment of sustainability-related collaborations, as many were updated with these considerations in mind. Importantly, we do not recommend that updated guidelines follow international examples in creating explicit sustainability-related carve outs, safe harbors, or exemptions. Due to the complex …

The Private Litigation Impact Of New York’S Green Amendment, Evan Bianchi, Sean Di Luccio, Martin Lockman, Vincent Nolette

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

The increasing urgency of climate change, combined with federal environmental inaction under the Trump Administration, inspired a wave of environmental action at the state and local level. Building on the environmental movement of the 1970s, activists have pushed to amend more than a dozen state constitutions to include “green amendments” — self-executing individual rights to a clean environment. In 2022, New York activists succeeded, and New York’s Green Amendment (the NYGA) now provides that “Each person shall have a right to clean air and water, and a healthful environment.”

However, the power of the NYGA and similar green amendments turns …

Executive Actions To Ensure Safe And Responsible Ocean Carbon Dioxide Removal Research In The United States, Romany M. Webb, Korey Silverman-Roati

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

This paper presents recommended actions that federal agencies could take, under existing law, to ensure safe and responsible permitting and regulation of ocean carbon dioxide removal (CDR) research in U.S. waters. Controlled field trials and other in-ocean research is critical to improve scientific and societal understanding of ocean CDR techniques that could help the U.S. reach its climate goals. That could raise a host of legal issues, however. Existing legal frameworks were not designed to regulate ocean CDR, and federal agencies have yet to fully explain how decades-old environmental laws will be applied to a new set of activities. This …

International Governance Of Ocean-Based Carbon Dioxide Removal: Recent Developments And Future Directions, Romany M. Webb

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

With the impacts of climate change intensifying, and progress in reducing the greenhouse gas emissions that cause it continuing to lag, the parties to the Paris Climate Agreement have emphasized the need to accelerate efforts to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, while simultaneously curbing emissions. As the parties have recognized, the ocean is already a major carbon sink, and could play an important role in future carbon dioxide removal (“CDR”) efforts. Scientists have proposed a variety of ocean-based CDR approaches, but most require further research to fully evaluate their efficacy, benefits, and risks. In-ocean testing of the approaches, and …

Rebutting 33 False Claims About Solar, Wind, And Electric Vehicles, Matthew Eisenson, Jacob Elkin, Andy Fitch, Matthew Ard, Kaya Sittinger, Samuel Lavine

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Achieving the United States’ ambitious emissions reduction goals depends in large part on the rapid adoption of wind and solar energy and the electrification of consumer vehicles. However, misinformation and coordinated disinformation about renewable energy is widespread and threatens to undermine the transition. In this report, the Sabin Center identifies and examines 33 of the most pervasive false claims about solar energy, wind energy, and electric vehicles, with the aim of promoting a more informed discussion.

Building A Cleaner, More Resilient Energy System In Cuba: Opportunities And Challenges, Korey Silverman-Roati, Daniel Whittle, Romany M. Webb, Jeffrey P. Fralick, Lila Harmar

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Cuba’s energy sector is at a crossroads. The country’s mostly fossil fuel-fired energy system faces a number of longstanding and serious challenges, including breakdowns at aging power plants, decreasing fuel imports and fuel shortages, and the growing threat of climate change-related disruptions. In recent years, Cuba has seen frequent electric blackouts and brownouts that have affected residents, businesses, and government institutions island wide.

Compounding these problems, Cuba is facing a severe economic crisis. In 2022, year-on-year inflation was 39% (down from 77% in 2021). While inflation is estimated to have dropped to 30% in 2023, the price of food increased …

Advisory Opinion On Climate Change: Summary Of Written Observations Submitted To The Inter-American Court Of Human Rights (Part 1), Maria Antonia Tigre

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

On January 9, 2023, the Foreign Ministers of Chile and Colombia requested an advisory opinion from the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACtHR) on the scope of state obligations for responding to the climate emergency under the frame of international human rights law and, specifically, under the American Convention on Human Rights. Within this context, the IACtHR received a total of 255 amicus brief submissions.

This report includes summaries of the amicus briefs submitted to the Court. Due to the number of submissions received and the short timeframe prior to the hearings, the report is divided into parts. This first …

Common But Differentiated Constitutionalisms: Does ‘Environmental Constitutionalism’ Offer Realistic Policy Options For Improving Un Environmental Law And Governance? Us And Latin American Perspectives, Erin Daly, Maria Antonia Tigre, Natalia Urzola

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Environmental law and governance have taken many different forms in the Americas in response to climate change mitigation. This contribution describes recent developments in the United States, Colombia, and Brazil, illustrating the divergent approaches to climate protection. The chapter highlights the common but differentiated ways in which the three countries in the Americas approach environment constitutionalism in the midst of the climate crisis. On one hand, Brazil and Colombia adopt a rights-based approach to tackle complex issues related to environmental law and governance in their context-specific responses to climate protection. In particular, the courts of Colombia and Brazil have been …

Sabin Center For Climate Change Law Annual Report 2023, Sabin Center For Climate Change Law

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

This year the Sabin Center for Climate Change introduces its first annual report, which highlights and synthesizes our cutting-edge research and innovative engagements in 2023.

It Is (Finally) Time For And Advisory Opinion On Climate Change: Challenges And Opportunities On A Trio Of Initiatives, Maria Antonia Tigre

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

In recent years, the number and diversity of climate-related lawsuits have increased, with courts in over seventy jurisdictions now handling such cases. After the expansion through domestic courts, stakeholders worldwide are turning to international courts and tribunals to help define the responsibilities of states in light of the climate crisis. Three initiatives requesting advisory opinions to international courts or tribunals have been announced within six months. These advisory opinions could have significant implications for international climate change law, defining the human rights obligations of states (and potentially corporations) in light of the climate crisis. It is expected the International Court …

The Right To A Healthy Environment In Latin America And The Caribbean: Compliance Through The Inter-American System And The Escazú Agreement, Maria Antonia Tigre

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

The Escazú Agreement has brought a myriad of environmental rights and duties to Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), including the recognition of a right to a healthy environment and rights of environmental defenders. As a new agreement, the task of implementing the Escazú Agreement still lies ahead. Significantly, a non-judicial, non-punitive, consultative and transparent Committee to support Implementation and Compliance was established as a subsidiary body of the Conference of the Parties to promote implementation. Concomitantly, the Inter-American Court of Human Rights recognised an autonomous right to a healthy environment, establishing it as directly justiciable within the Inter-American System …

Climate Change In The Courts: A 2023 Retrospective, Maria Antonia Tigre, Margaret Barry

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Drawing from the jurisdictions covered in the Sabin Center's United States (U.S.) and Global Climate Litigation databases, this report offers insights into key developments, emerging themes, evolving legal strategies, and the pulse of climate litigation in 2023.

Itlos Advisory Opinion On Climate Change: Summary Of Briefs And Statements Submitted To The Tribunal, Maria Antonia Tigre, Korey Silverman-Roati

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

This report provides a summary of the briefs and statements submitted to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) in response to the Co-Chairs of Commission of Small Island States (COSIS)’ request for an advisory opinion on climate change-related legal questions. The central issue before the ITLOS is whether State Parties to UNCLOS have specific obligations regarding the prevention, reduction, and control of marine environmental pollution stemming from climate change, as well as the protection and preservation of the marine environment concerning climate change impacts. While States and civil society organizations have put forward a variety of …

The Legal Case For Equity In Local Climate Action Planning, Amy E. Turner

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Over the last half decade, local climate action plans have regularly come to incorporate considerations of racial and socioeconomic equity, recognizing the ways in which low-income communities and communities of color experience earlier and worse consequences from global warming, and these communities are also at risk of being harmed by policies meant to address climate change. Until now, however, the discourse on equity in climate action planning has largely pertained to policy; it acknowledges the disproportionate harm that certain communities experience as a result of climate change and policies to address climate change, and suggests policy tools that can address …

Expert Insights On Best Practices For Community Benefits Agreements, Matthew Eisenson, Romany M. Webb

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

This report outlines 35 recommendations for developers and host communities when negotiating and drafting Community Benefits Agreements (CBAs) for direct air capture hubs and other clean energy projects. These recommendations come from interviews with attorneys and other experts who have collectively negotiated dozens of CBAs for climate infrastructure and other types of projects.

Permitting Co2 Pipelines, Martin Lockman

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Both emissions reductions and removal of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere are essential if we hope to minimize the damage caused by climate change and globally reduce our net emissions of greenhouse gasses to zero. Some CO2 removal techniques, like “direct air capture” that uses chemical and electrochemical processes to capture atmospheric CO2 at relatively low concentrations, generate a stream of captured CO2 that is then injected into underground rock formations referred to as “geologic storage.” CO2 pipelines represent the most efficient way to transport high volumes of captured CO2 to geologic storage locations. However, while …

Decommissioning Liability At The End Of Offshore Oil And Gas: A Review Of International Obligations, National Laws, And Contractual Approaches In Ten Jurisdictions, Martin Lockman, Martin Dietrich Brauch, Esteban F. Fresno Rodríguez, José Luis Gallardo Torres

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Offshore oil and gas infrastructure faces an existential threat: the increasingly pressing need to address the climate emergency. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change projects that GHG emissions from existing and planned fossil fuel infrastructure will push global warming past the Paris Agreement’s 1.5°C threshold, and more detailed projections estimate that “nearly 60 per cent of oil and fossil methane gas ... must remain unextracted to keep within a 1.5 °C carbon budget.” The growing urgency of climate action, coupled with the increasing adoption of renewable energy systems and energy-efficient technologies, may strand thousands of offshore oil and gas installations …

Beyond The North–South Divide: Litigation's Role In Resolving Climate Change Loss And Damage Claims, Maria Antonia Tigre, Margaretha Wewerinke-Singh

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Within the international climate regime, legal aspects surrounding loss and damage (L&D) are contentious topics, implicating liability, compensation and notions of vulnerability. The attribution of responsibility and the pursuit of redress for L&D present intricate legal and governance challenges. The ongoing debates under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change are characterized by a pronounced North–South divide and have done little to provide tangible support to those most affected by L&D. This apparent neglect has prompted exploration of alternative avenues for climate harm redress. The burgeoning field of litigation for liability and compensation of climate harm holds potential significance …

Modelling Climate Litigation Risk For (Re)Insurers, Martin Lockman

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

In response to the growing threat of climate change, the insurance industry has made significant investments in modelling and quantifying physical climate risks. However, the emerging risk of climate litigation has proven particularly difficult to model. In 2015 Mark Carney, then-Governor of the Bank of England and Chairman of the Financial Stability Board, warned that climate litigation poses “long-tail risks” for insurers that may be “significant, uncertain and non-linear.” Since that warning, the number of climate-related cases has more than doubled, and the scope and financial significance of climate litigation has become increasingly clear. However, insurers and regulators still struggle …

International Recognition Of The Right To A Healthy Environment: What Is The Added Value For Latin America And The Caribbean?, Maria Antonia Tigre

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Although there is still no United Nations treaty on the right to a healthy environment, the recognition of the right by the UN General Assembly and the UN Human Rights Council have helped solidify its status as customary international law. The overwhelming recognition of the right at the national and regional levels, and now at the United Nations, evidences greater uniformity and certainty in understanding human rights obligations relating to the environment. But what value do the resolutions add to the regional recognition of the right in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC)? Through judicial and legislative developments, LAC has …

Global Climate Litigation Report: 2023 Status Review, Michael Burger, Maria Antonia Tigre

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

This Global Climate Litigation Report: 2023 Status Review, which updates previous United Nations Environment Programme reports published in 2017 and 2020, provides an overview of the current state of climate change litigation and an update of global climate change litigation trends. It provides judges, lawyers, advocates, policymakers, researchers, environmental defenders, climate activists, human rights activists (including women’s rights activists), NGOs, businesses and the international community with an essential resource to understand the current state of global climate litigation, including descriptions of the key issues that courts have faced in the course of climate change cases.

Transnational Insights For Climate Litigation At The European Court Of Human Rights: A South-North Perspective In Pursuit Of Climate Justice, Melanie Murcott, Maria Antonia Tigre, Nesa Zimmermann

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

The global climate crisis is increasingly recognised as an issue of climate injustice, including because it is causing (and worsening) inequalities and human rights violations. Moreover, responsibility for emissions and vulnerability to climate impacts are not evenly distributed. They vary among and within states. In order to tackle these issues of justice both within and among states, litigants have taken to domestic and regional courts to engage in climate litigation. A body of transnational climate jurisprudence is emerging in which courts are increasingly looking to laws beyond their relevant state or region, engaging with the moral aims of human rights …