Law Commons^™

Virginia's Water Resource Law: A System Of Exemptions And Preferences Challenging The Future Of Public Health, The Environment, And Economic Development, Jefferson D. Reynolds

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.

What's Worse, Nuclear Waste Or The United States' Failed Policy For Its Disposal?, Christopher M. Keegan

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.

Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Measures In The United States Electric Power Industry, Joel B. Eisen

Law Faculty Publications

This chapter addresses greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation measures in the US energy sector, and, specifically, those applying to the US electric power industry. The focus is on the systems of federal, state, regional, and local regulation of GHG emissions associated with electricity generation, transmission and distribution, concentrating on the regulatory trends likely to have the largest impacts on mitigating GHG emissions. In addition, this section will discuss the extent to which these systems of regulating GHG emissions have evolved over the past decade.

Public Hazard, Personal Peril: The Impact Of Non-Governmental Organizations In The Environmental Justice Movement, Andrea Y. Simpson

Richmond Journal of Law and the Public Interest

This article argues that the local emphasis of what I call micromovements that form the larger Environmental Justice Movement could gain more traction from relationships with Non-Governmental Organizations. Such partnerships are emerging on a national level; however, since the localized movements communicate with, but are not partners with, national organizations such as the National Black Environmental Network, it is unclear how such partnerships add value to the activities of local groups. Moreover, some partnerships are forged for the organization of a specific event such as a conference or working group study Part II of this article discusses an overview of …

What’S Worse, Nuclear Waste Or The United States’ Failed Policy For Its Disposal?, Christopher M. Keegan

Law Student Publications

This comment will analyze the SNF ("spent nuclear fuel") problem in the United States and offer recommendations for how to move forward. First, Part I will summarize the path that has led to this impasse. Part II offers recommended solutions on how the United States can develop a workable SNF solution that includes a permanent repository, consolidated intermediate storage, and reprocessing. Finally, this comment will offer its conclusion that the United States should begin the process of establishing a permanent geologic repository for SNF at a location other than Yucca Mountain, create a system of consolidated interim storage to temporarily …

Stigmatized Sites And Urban Brownfield Redevelopment, Joel B. Eisen

Law Faculty Publications

This chapter addresses the "stigmatized sites" located in urban areas in the United States and Europe and the "brownfields" redevelopment programs aimed at removing the stigma and promoting remediation and reuse of these sites. Although the European Union has put regulatory frameworks in place, the United States has led the global effort to address brown fields redevelopment, and the discussion in this chapter will focus on American models for brown fields remediation and reuse.

Time To Upgrade Drinking Water Protections, Noah M. Sachs

Law Faculty Publications

A year ago, residents of Charleston, W.Va., learned that their entire drinking water supply had become contaminated by MCHM, a toxic chemical used to wash coal. Ten thousand gallons of MCHM had spilled from a corroding storage tank by the Elk River, located a mile upstream of the city’s drinking water intake pipes. As a result of the chemical spill, 300,000 citizens lost their water for more than a week, and hundreds sought emergency care.

That accident alone should have been a wake-up call for Virginians about the need to protect our water supply from chemical spills. But a year …

Public Hazard, Personal Peril: The Impact Of Non-Governmental Organizations In The Environmental Justice Movement, Andrea Y. Simpson

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

This article argues that the local emphasis of what I call micromovements that form the larger Environmental Justice Movement could gain more traction from relationships with Non-Governmental Organizations. Such partnerships are emerging on a national level; however, since the localized movements communicate with, but are not partners with, national organizations such as the National Black Environmental Network, it is unclear how such partnerships add value to the activities of local groups. Moreover, some partnerships are forged for the organization of a specific event such as a conference or working group study Part II of this article discusses an overview of …

Environmental Justice As Civil Rights, Wyatt G. Sassman

Richmond Journal of Law and the Public Interest

Environmental justice litigation using the Equal Protection Clause and civil rights statutes has largely failed. This article explains that failure as a result of a general shift by federal courts to limit the scope of civil rights law rather than an improper characterization of environmental justice as a civil rights issue. This explanation is important to both encourage and caution environmental justice advocates and scholars as they approach claims under Title VIII. I suggest that Title VIII's ability to bridge property and dignity may still present a powerful and much-needed tool for bringing equality to environmental law, but that, based …

Nrdc Sues Epa For A Failure To Issue Hazardous Substance Regulations: The End Of A Decades-Long Public Risk In Sight, Jack Morgan

Law Student Publications

Currently there are no federal regulations that prevent hazardous substance spills at onshore facilities, such as tank farms, or in communities where a spill of those chemicals could threaten water supplies. On July 21, 2015, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) filed a complaint on behalf of the Environmental Justice Health Alliance for Chemical Policy Reform (EJHA) and People Concerned About Chemical Safety (PCCS) against EPA and EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy in her official capacity as administrator, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The case has been assigned to Judge Shira A. Sheindlin. The …

Environmental Justice As Civil Rights, Wyatt G. Sassman

Richmond Public Interest Law Review

Environmental justice litigation using the Equal Protection Clause and civil rights statutes has largely failed. This article explains that failure as a result of a general shift by federal courts to limit the scope of civil rights law rather than an improper characterization of environmental justice as a civil rights issue. This explanation is important to both encourage and caution environmental justice advocates and scholars as they approach claims under Title VIII. I suggest that Title VIII's ability to bridge property and dignity may still present a powerful and much-needed tool for bringing equality to environmental law, but that, based …