Law Commons^™

Conserving Parks, Transforming Lives: How The Student Conservation Association Is Shaping The Next 100 Years Of National Parks And The Next Generation Of American Youth, Liz Putnam

Akron Law Review

The National Park Service greeted a record-shattering 307.2 million visitors in 2015. Ironically, however, national parks are becoming irrelevant to large segments of our society. The typical national park visitor is approaching retirement age. Nearly four in five visitors are White, despite the fact that Whites currently make up less than 63% of the US population and are on pace to be in the minority by 2044. Throw in the nature-deficit disorder epidemic among today’s youth and the ongoing shift in our population to urban areas, and the trends do not bode well for the future of our parks.

The …

Alaska: Extraordinary Parks, Extraordinarily Complicated, Julie Lurman Joly

Akron Law Review

In many ways, national parks in Alaska face the same difficulties as other parks nationwide: pockets of strong anti-federal sentiment, increasingly high usage rates (at least in a couple of Alaska parks) leading to resource degradation, decreasing funding, and increasing maintenance costs. On the other hand, Alaska parks are completely unique in their circumstances. Many parks in Alaska receive few to no visitors each year, and Alaska parks contain vast tracts of land and resources but are managed by the barest minimum number of employees. Furthermore, Alaska’s national parks operate in a more complex legal environment than most other national …

The National Park System And Nepa: Non-Impairment In An Age Of Disruption, Jamison E. Colburn

Akron Law Review

We live in an age of disruption. “Disruptive innovations,” typically digital in nature, create new markets and value chains that grow and overthrow market leaders and other incumbents. The founders of our National Park System and National Park Service (NPS) had little sense of such disruption and, judging by how our park ideals have fared in recent decades, too little sense of how disruption works in nature, either. The parks embody a set of ideals and, as one of the most noted inventions of America’s democracy, sit in uneasy tension with the constant disruption of nature’s composition and function. The …

The National Park Service At 100, Donald J. Hellmann

Akron Law Review

In its first century, the National Park Service was transformed from an agency that managed a small number of western parks to one responsible for over 400 sites across the country. The management of these park sites has changed as well, with many new parks structured as a partnership effort between the National Park Service and surrounding cities and towns, as well as non-profit organizations and friends groups. The Park Service has had its work extended by Congress to reach beyond park boundaries in order to help states and local governments with resource preservation and the development of recreational opportunities …

An Introduction To The National Park Service Symposium, Sarah J. Morath

Akron Law Review

This symposium features four different perspectives on the National Park Service Centennial, and includes the voice of Donald J. Hellman, an attorney who has spent much of his career working for the National Park Service in Washington, D.C., Jamison E. Colburn, an environmental law and policy scholar at Penn State Law School and former EPA attorney, Julie Joly Lurman, a natural resources law and public lands expert, and Liz Putnam, a youth and conservation advocate.

Ohio House Bill 869 And Similar Statutes: An Analysis Of Mandatory Deposits On Beverage Containers To Promote Recycling In Relation To Environmental Control, Gary R. Myers

Akron Law Review

Proposed House Bill 8691 requires that all soft drink and beer containers carry a mandatory five-cent deposit in order to promote their recycling. This would necessarily cause a reduction in the litter discarded along Ohio's highways, parks, beaches, etc. To Ohio environmentalists, the Bill represents a major legislative response to the growing litter and solid waste problem. However, to industry it represents a major curtailment of their production growth and profits, specifically those industries whose production is concentrated solely or substantially in the area of non-returnable cans and bottles. If the Bill becomes effective it will be a major victory …

Considerations Of Potential Tort Liability With Respect To Natural Draft Cooling Towers Associated With Steam-Electric Power Plants, Thomas D. Corkran

Akron Law Review

To prevent thermal pollution and to conserve our water supply, it appears that we must learn to live with natural draft cooling towers, at least for the next several decades. Proponents of natural draft cooling towers maintain that the possibility of localized fogging and icing is negligible, but the potential hazards of artificial salt fallout are very real. Also, there appears to be a trend developing in the law which could lead to an action against the operator of a natural draft cooling tower for aesthetic annoyances. There are several theories of action which might lie in such cases, but …

Four Years Of Environmental Impact Statements: A Review Of Agency Administration Of Nepa, Mary Anne Sullivan

Akron Law Review

This article will focus on the environmental impact statement process of NEPA functions. It will analyze some of the structural weaknesses of the process, some of the interests private parties are using it to protect and, finally, whether or not it is bringing us closer to a realization of the lofty goals the Act sets forth in Section 4331.

Nuclear Powered Satellites: The U.S.S.R. Cosmos 954 And The Canadian Claim, Eilene Galloway

Akron Law Review

“On January 24, 1978 the Soviet satellite, Cosmos 954, fell from outer space and entered Canada's airspace. The component parts of this nuclear powered satellite disintegrated and scattered radioactive debris over northwest Canada in an area the size of Austria. Fear of a nuclear explosion and unknown hazards to the environment evoked worldwide alarm. This incident set in motion a variety of studies analyzing one of the most unique multidisciplinary problems created by the use and exploration of outer space. These continuing studies of nuclear power for satellites will lead to decisions of global significance. There is an opportunity to …

Radioactive Waste Disposal: The Emerging Issue Of States' Rights, John F. Seiberling

Akron Law Review

The purpose of this article is to examine the issue of the state role in federal nuclear programs and the need for Congressional action to insure that states will have an active role in federal decisions to dispose of radioactive waste within their jurisdictions.

Relationship Of Federal Common Law And Federal Regulatory Statutes, City Of Milwaukee V. Illinois And Michigan, David E. Morris

Akron Law Review

In City of Milwaukee v. Illinois and Michigan, the United States Supreme Court vacated the judgment of the court of appeals and remanded the case, holding that the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972 had indeed displaced the federal common law action authorized by the Court before the 1972 Amendments were enacted. The environmental law ramifications of this decision are significant. However, of greater significance is the Court's attempt in Milwaukee to efface some of the uncertainty surrounding the federal common law, and to elucidate the relationship between federal regulatory statutes and federal common law.

The Detection And Recovery Of Contraband Nuclear Material, John N. O'Brien

Akron Law Review

The feasibility of detection and subsequent recovery of nuclear fissile material illicitly removed from a facility is a question which has rarely been addressed. This article will explore the adequacy of remote detection and location devices designed to find contraband fissile nuclear materials and will examine the legal consequences of going beyond remote detection and location to actual searches for contraband. The TMI incident made it clear that such societal consequences were not given sufficient attention in the past and their relevance to the issue of whether to use a plutonium economy is unquestionable.

A Summary Of Issues Involving Marine Mammals And Highly Migratory Species, John Warren Kindt

Akron Law Review

The conservation and protection of marine mammals is one of many serious problems relating to exploitation of the living resources of the ocean. While other problems, for example the management of fish stocks and the protection of anadromous, catadromous, and highly migratory species, receive a great deal of attention in the Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOS Convention), negotiated by the Third U.N. Conference on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS III), the problem of marine mammals is addressed directly in only two provisions. Certainly, varying political and economic interests impede negotiation of a comprehensive international protective regime; …

Shall We Be Arbitrary Or Reasonable: Standards Of Review For Agency Threshold Determinations Under Nepa, Janie A. Johns

Akron Law Review

The National Environmental Protection Act of 1969 (NEPA), went into effect on January 1, 1970. It consists of a declaration of purpose followed by two separate titles. Title I contains both the broad policy statement of Congress "to use all practicable means and measures . . .to create and maintain conditions under which man and nature can exist in productive harmony," and the "action-forcing mechanism" of Section 102(2)(c) that requires all Federal agencies to prepare an environmental impact statement for all "major Federal actions significantly affecting the quality of the human environment." Title II established the Council on Environmental Quality …

Business Ethics, Law, And The Corporate Use Of Laboraory Animals, David Hoch

Akron Law Review

This paper will examine, first, the fundamental theories pertaining to animal interests; then the relevant laws and the recognition of animal interests the laws require of corporate laboratories; and finally, how (if at all) these claims to interests for animals impinge upon corporate ethics. Perhaps a consideration of these matters will clarify the validity of the unorthodox proposition that corporate responsibility extends to nonhumans.

Municipal Solid Waste Management: The States Must Pick Up Where Congress Left Off, Julie Jones Thompson

Akron Law Review

This comment examines solid waste management strategies which present alternatives to landfilling. The EPA has encouraged the incineration of solid wastes. However, incineration may pose more environmental problems than it resolves. The EPA has not encouraged recycling programs which could achieve more environmentally protective results.

This comment also discusses the state's responsibility for solid waste management. Currently, municipalities bear the brunt of this problem. However, the municipalities' plans have resulted in inadequate and isolated solid waste management pockets throughout the country. Fortunately, the states are beginning to respond to this problem.

Pennsylvania V. Union Gas Company: The Supreme Court Employs The Wrong Means To Reach The Proper End, Christopher A. Brodman

Akron Law Review

This casenote reviews the facts of Union Gas, the history of eleventh amendment jurisprudence, and the purposes of CERCLA. The note critically analyzes the Supreme Court's approach to evading eleventh amendment immunity. Finally, the note contemplates the impact of Union Gas on CERCLA and eleventh amendment law.

Interpreting The Pollution Exclusion Clause In The Comprehensive General Liability Policy - Ohio's Next Step, W. Roger Fry, Jonathan P. Saxton

Akron Law Review

Our purpose here is to analyze the courts' treatment of the pollution exclusion clause. From the context of insurance policy interpretation, decisions regarding the exclusion will be reviewed and placed in a national perspective. The Ohio decisions will be examined against the backdrop of current trends and the national consensus.

We conclude, for the reasons which follow, that the Ohio Supreme Court, when presented with the issue, should not adopt the findings of the Ohio appellate courts in interpreting the pollution exclusion clause, but should recognize that those decisions were wrong and follow the law which finds sudden and accidental …

Rails To Trails: Converting America's Abandoned Railroads Into Nature Trails, Thomas A. Jones

Akron Law Review

As America becomes more populated, people escape urban pressures through bicycling, horseback riding and hiking. To this end, several old railroad beds have been converted to trails. In 1987, over ten million Americans used over 2,400 miles of such trails in thirty-one states.

In 1920, the nation's railway system reached its peak of 272,000 miles; however, the system has been losing track since that time. Approximately 141,000 miles are now in use, but it is predicted that another 3,000 miles will be abandoned every year through the end of this century. Many would like to see the abandoned railway lines …

State Regulation Of Worker Safety In The Nuclear Industry: The Impact Of Goodyear Atomic Corp. V. Miller, Donald A. Mihokovich

Akron Law Review

This casenote will discuss the effect of Goodyear Atomic Corp. v. Miller on federal preemption in the nuclear industry. This decision does not mark federal preemption's demise. Preemption will continue in areas involving protection of the public from the dangers of radioactivity. Nevertheless, this decision may have an adverse effect on the private sector's continuing involvement in the nuclear industry, an involvement that is essential for both national energy policy and national defense.

The Migratory Bird Treaty Act: Steel Shot Versus Lead Shot For Hunting Migratory Waterfowl, David G. Lombardi

Akron Law Review

This comment discusses the merits of the regulations prohibiting the use of lead shot for the hunting of waterfowl. The evolution of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act is examined along with the advantages of hunting as a tool for effective wildlife conservation. The controversy of lead poisoned waterfowl is also discussed, and a more effective conservation measure than steel shot is proposed.

Ohio Hazardous Material Transportation Act: An Overview, David J. Leland, Steven D. Lesser

Akron Law Review

On June 24, 1988, in Miamisburg, Ohio, Governor Richard F. Celeste signed into law H.B. 428, (known as Ohio's Hazardous Material Transportation Act, hereinafter referred to as the Act) a comprehensive legislative initiative regulating the transportation of hazardous materials. The signing of the Act was the culmination of a two year effort to solve a problem that Ohioians, and the nation as a whole, became aware of in July, 1986 in Miamisburg, Ohio. The new law provides for: a registration system with a graduated fee structure, pre-notification and route assessments for "ultra-hazardous" materials, and a civil forfeiture system with penalties …

Nepa At 21: Over The Hill Already?, David G. Burleson

Akron Law Review

The first part of this Comment will briefly review the somewhat meteoric rise of NEPA including the increase in public awareness which led to federal action, its projected effect, and the manner in which the courts seemed to be heading in their treatment of NEPA. The Comment will then review the decline of NEPA due to subsequent Supreme Court decisions. Finally, the Comment will consider possible remedies for the present anemic condition of this first federal environmental statute.

Kayser-Roth, Joslyn, And The Problem Of Parent Corporation Liability Under Cercla, James A. King

Akron Law Review

This article examines these issues by focusing on the responsibility of parent corporations as "owners" and as "operators" under section 107 of CERCLA. The scope of the analysis is limited to corporations that participate in the management of other corporations. Moreover, for the sake of simplicity, the reach of the analysis is limited to the situation in which a corporation owns one hundred percent of the stock of the subsidiary.

Part I provides a general overview of the principle of limited shareholder liability as it applies to parent corporations and of its economic underpinnings. Part II reviews judicial applications of …

City Of Chicago V. Environmental Defense Fund, Inc." Making The Case For Broader Application Of Chevron, U.S.A. V. Natural Resource Defense Council, Frank Lasalle

Akron Law Review

The purpose of this Note is to examine the Supreme Court's reasoning in City of Chicago v. Environmental Defense Fund, and to explore the implications of the Court's decision. First, Section II of this Note delineates the relevant statutory and regulatory background concerning the regulation of municipal solid waste. Next, Section III presents the statement of the case. Finally, Section IV analyzes the Supreme Court's decision. Section IV(A) criticizes the Court's limited focus in interpreting the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA). Section IV(B) contends that the Court's interpretation of RCRA is incorrect because it violates one of …

Dolphin Protection And The Mammal Protection Act Have Met Their Match: The General Agreement On Tariffs And Trade, Joseph J. Urgese

Akron Law Review

The conflict between international environmental conservation and international free trade is not a battle between good and evil, but a struggle between reconciling the good with the good. Indeed, the international community has recognized the growing "need for rules to enhance [the] positive interaction between trade and environmental measures, for the promotion of sustainable development."' The contracting parties to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade [hereinafter GATT] agreed to formalize this principle during the Uruguay Round in April of 1994 by establishing a Committee on Trade and the Environment [hereinafter CTE]. This was an important step toward commingling international …

Daubert And Judicial Review: How Does An Administrative Agency Distinguish Valid Science From Junk Science?, D. Hiep Truong

Akron Law Review

This broad authority to assess risk, however, leaves too much discretion to administrative agencies. Even more disturbing is the fact that different agencies assess the same risks differently, which leads to inconsistent results. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), for example, in determining the cancer risks from pesticides on food, produced an estimated risk of cancer mortality ten times greater than the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). To use a law and economics model, valuing equivalent (or identical) risks differently leaves open the possibility of economic misallocation. For example, if one agency has determined the proper level of risk, and assuming …

Ohio's Brownfield Problem And Possible Solutions: What Is Required For A Successful Brownfield Initiative?, Faith R. Dylewski

Akron Law Review

This Comment intends to survey the current state of Ohio’s brownfield redevelopment programs. It also examines the successes and failures of other states’ brownfield redevelopment efforts in order to uncover the elements of success common to a comprehensive brownfield redevelopment plan. Part II discusses the environmental, economic, and social problems that are associated with brownfield sites. Part III examines the impediments to brownfield redevelopment. Part IV illuminates the federal government’s efforts aimed at the brownfield problem. Part V provides an overview of Ohio’s current brownfield redevelopment programs. Part VI discusses the ingredients of a successful state brownfield redevelopment initiative through …

The Fox Is Guarding The Henhouse: Enhancing The Role Of The Epa In Fonsi Determinations Pursuant To Nepa, Wendy B. Davis

Akron Law Review

This article suggests an enhanced role for the EPA and the other agencies that have authority to protect our natural resources, including the FWS, NPS, and others. These agencies should have authority to evaluate the environmental assessments leading to a FONSI and require preparation of an EIS pursuant to NEPA. This paper also suggests that these agencies need more authority in the substantive decision of choice of an alternative action pursuant to the EIS, and the determination of whether the proposed action should proceed based on the conclusions in the EIS. This could be accomplished with an amendment to the …

Intellectual Property Rights In Virtual Environments: Considering The Rights Of Owners, Programmers And Virtual Avatars, Woodrow Barfield

Akron Law Review

An emerging issue in online role-playing games is whether the licensor or participant owns the virtual property (such as a virtual avatar) created while the game is being played...Such rights have real world consequences for the objects created in the virtual world...Commercial software has been designed to allow people to create their own interactive, emoting 3D avatar using photographs of their individual faces, and their own unique voice as templates...Virtual environments can be designed for single inhabitants, such as a solo flight trainee, or for many, simultaneous participants... Further, people who spend significant amounts of time in virtual environments are …