Law Commons^™

The Once And Future Clean Air Act: Impacts Of The Inflation Reduction Act On Epa's Regulatory Authority, Nicholas Bryner

Journal Articles

The Clean Air Act is one of Congress's greatest success stories. The major piece of legislation, passed in the context of environmental and public health crises, has driven technological change through regulation that has dramatically improved air quality even in a prolonged period of economic growth. In the context of climate change, however, despite many efforts since the 1990s, the Clean Air Act has not proven to be a successful legislative tool. Instead, the Act has faced complex obstacles in the statutory language and a trend in Supreme Court jurisprudence-leading up to and including the June 2022 decision in West …

Mother Nature Needs Her Sox: Reviewing The Impetus And Goals Of The Increased Financial Regulations Of The Sarbanes-Oxley Act And How They Parallel The Needs Of Today's Environmental Protection Agency, Scott Meyer

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

As climate change and natural disasters appear to be increasingly prevalent across the United States, the question of how to respond to these threats looms large. Arguably, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) represents the tip of that responding spear. The agency, literally dedicated to protecting the environment, is positioned to drive industry environmental standards, set sustainable metrics, and even determine thresholds for habitable life.

Looks can be deceiving, though. This Note examines the current state of the EPA, and the minimal effect it currently has on penalizing and deterring industry environmental degradation. It specifically focuses on a number of high-profile …

When Improper Disposal Leads To More Than Hospital Visits: The Need For A National Standard For Used Medical Sharps, Albana Zherka

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Concerning Catskill: Missed Opportunity, Broken Precedent And The Plight Of American Waters, Chase Corey

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

As society progresses and the population grows, uninhibited and unregulated pollution has become a pressing dilemma for current and future generations. Whether it is plastic on the beaches, oil in the oceans, or smog in the air, modern citizens of the Earth face a daily onslaught of visible consequences from the actions of polluters. But what about the not so visible consequences? Every day there is pollution occurring at a microscopic level, yet many are unaware of its presence. This infinitesimal issue is nutrient pollution, and despite its diminutive cause, it is deeply affecting one of the world’s most vital …

Doing More Or Doing Less For The Environment: Shedding Light On Epa's "Stealth" Method Of Environmental Enforcement, Ronald H. Rosenberg

Ronald H. Rosenberg

Since the 1970s, environmental protection goals have gone from general statements of political desire to highly articulated systems of environmental regulation implemented by federal, state, and local governments. Environmental statutes have been enacted giving administrative agencies such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the responsibility for translating broad policy goals into specific regulatory requirements. Through its enforcement program, EPA seeks to assure that these general goals are achieved by individual actors. This Article examines a recent trend in EPA's practices, increased reliance on internal agency methods of enforcement. The study analyzes EPA's administrative enforcement system with particular emphasis on …

Environmental Justice And The Clean Power Plan: The Case Of Energy Efficiency, Cecilia Martinez

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Plan Ej 2014: Fact Or Fiction? A Critique Of The Obama Administration’S Efforts On Environmental Justice, Jeanne Zokovitch Paben

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

As President Obama’s tenure in office draws to a close, environmental injustices continue to proliferate in communities across this country. During the Obama Administration, there has been a strong government voice on combating these injustices, yet under their watch we see travesties like Flint, Michigan. Flint is the latest example of how our laws and government processes are not only inadequate in protecting overburdened communities, but also how they are complicit in perpetuating harm. This Article aims to answer how that happens, first, by cataloging the environmental justice efforts under the Obama Administration, most notably through Plan EJ 2014, then …

Buzzkill: How The Epa’S Inaction Is Killing America’S Bees, Kelsey Ott

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

The Collective Origins Of Toxic Air Pollution: Implications For Greenhouse Gas Trading And Toxic Hotspots, David E. Adelman

Indiana Law Journal

This Article presents the first synthesis of geospatial data on toxic air pollution in the United States. Contrary to conventional views, the data show that vehicles and small stationary sources emit a majority of the air toxics nationally. Industrial sources, by contrast, rarely account for more than ten percent of cumulative cancer risks from all outdoor sources of air toxics. This pattern spans multiple spatial scales, ranging from census tracts to the nation as a whole. However, it is most pronounced in metropolitan areas, which have the lowest air quality and are home to eighty percent of the U.S. population. …

Doing More Or Doing Less For The Environment: Shedding Light On Epa's "Stealth" Method Of Environmental Enforcement, Ronald H. Rosenberg

Faculty Publications

Since the 1970s, environmental protection goals have gone from general statements of political desire to highly articulated systems of environmental regulation implemented by federal, state, and local governments. Environmental statutes have been enacted giving administrative agencies such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the responsibility for translating broad policy goals into specific regulatory requirements. Through its enforcement program, EPA seeks to assure that these general goals are achieved by individual actors. This Article examines a recent trend in EPA's practices, increased reliance on internal agency methods of enforcement. The study analyzes EPA's administrative enforcement system with particular emphasis on …

Title Vi And The Warren County Protests, Bradford Mank

Faculty Articles and Other Publications

One part of the 1982 civil rights struggle against building a Polychlorinated Biphenyls ("PCB") landfill in Warren County, North Carolina, was a suit by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ("NAACP") under Title VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act. Although the suit was unsuccessful, the Warren County protests led to a 1983 General Accounting Office study and a 1987 United Church of Christ's Commission on Racial Justice (CRJ) study, both of which found that hazardous waste facilities were more likely to be located in minority communities. The Warren County protests and the two studies helped build …

Perfect Harmony: The Federal Courts Have Quarantined Harmon And Preserved Epa's Power To Overfile, Thomas A. Benson

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Overview Of Prior Informed Consent From And International Perspective, Melanie Nakagawa

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Section 8: The Environment, Institute Of Bill Of Rights Law, William & Mary Law School

Supreme Court Preview

No abstract provided.

Polychlorinated Biphenyls And The "Mega Rule:" Will It Have The Mega-Impact The Epa Desired?, Lauren Maclanahan

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

American Mining Congress V. Army Corps Of Engineers: Ignoring Chevron And The Clean Water Act's Broad Purpose, Bradford Mank

Faculty Articles and Other Publications

Part I of this article will provide a brief introduction to section 404 of the Clean Water Act. Part II will examine the Tulloch rule. Part III will examine the district court's opinion. Finally, part IV will demonstrate that section 404(a) is ambiguous regarding whether incidental fallback from dredging may in some circumstances constitute disposal under the statute and, accordingly, that under the Chevron doctrine the district court erred in failing to defer to the agencies' Tulloch rule.

From Compelling To Catalyzing: The Federal Government's Changing Role In Environmental Protection, Gerald A. Emison

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

The Promotion And Preservation Of Culture As Part Of Environmental Policy, Nancy Perkins Spyke

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Nafta And The Environment: A Proposal For Free Trade In Hazardous Waste Between The United States And Mexico Symposium - The Environment And The United States-Mexico Border., David W. Eaton

St. Mary's Law Journal

Over the past decade, the transboundary movement of hazardous waste has become an important issue. Because of its geographic proximity to the United States and its desire to attract foreign investment, Mexico has become one of the United States-owned maquiladoras’ favorite dumping grounds. The recent North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) may only exacerbate matters. Because the health and environmental risks associated with the inappropriate disposal of hazardous waste knows no boundaries, it is important NAFTA signatories jointly address waste issues. While NAFTA has had a positive impact on environmental protection in the United States and Mexico, the NAFTA debate …

The Maquiladora Industry And Environmental Degradation In The United States-Mexico Borderlands Symposium - The Environment And The United States-Mexico Border., Edward J. Williams

St. Mary's Law Journal

Periods of rapid industrial growth and environmental degradation in the United States-Mexico Borderlands have historically coincided with negative shifts in Mexico’s economy. The Mexican economic crisis of 1982 sparked burgeoning growth in the maquiladora industry, with plants in the Borderlands increasing at a rate of fifteen percent per year. Due to the Mexican economic crisis of the mid-1990s, renewed industrial expansion and environmental degradation is once again expected. The maquiladora program is frequently used to identify cooperative industrial efforts between the United States and Mexico. The term refers to an assembly process in which twin plants operate on opposite sides …

Great Lakes Water Quality Initiative: National Standards Governing A Binational Resource A Call For International Rulemaking, Sean P. Gallagher

Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies

No abstract provided.

What Comes After Technology: Using An Exceptions Process To Improve Residual Risk Regulation Of Hazardous Air Pollutants, Bradford Mank

Faculty Articles and Other Publications

Section 112 of the Clean Air Act (the Act) governs the regulation of hazardous air pollutants. From 1970 to 1990, the statute required the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to regulate hazardous air pollutants on a pollutant-by-pollutant basis. Environmental policy analysts generally acknowledge that this approach failed due to scientific uncertainties and unclear direction from Congress on how the EPA should balance the competing concerns of cost and safety. In an effort to improve the Act's effectiveness, Congress passed the 1990 Amendments (the Amendments) to the Act, which established a two-phased approach to regulation. First, subsection 112(d) requires the …

An Evaluation Of Rcra, David J. Lennett

Getting a Handle on Hazardous Waste Control (Summer Conference, June 9-10)

68 pages (includes 1 illustration).

Contains 1 page of references.

Contains 5 attachments.