Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 10 of 10
Full-Text Articles in Law
New York Environmental Legislation In 2023, Michael B. Gerrard
New York Environmental Legislation In 2023, Michael B. Gerrard
Faculty Scholarship
In 2023, New York enacted laws to aid the state in achieving the renewable energy and greenhouse gas emissions reduction mandates of the 2019 Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA).The state also now has new laws to reduce exposure to lead in drinking water and paint; to ban natural gas furnaces and stoves in new buildings; to restrict neonicotinoid pesticides; and to encourage “nature-based solutions” for stabilizing tidal coastlines. These and other new and amended environmental and energy laws—as well as notable vetoes—are discussed in this article.
New York Falling Behind In Implementing Bold Climate Law, Michael B. Gerrard
New York Falling Behind In Implementing Bold Climate Law, Michael B. Gerrard
Faculty Scholarship
In July 2019, shortly after Gov. Andrew Cuomo signed the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA), I wrote in an op-ed, “The champagne corks are still popping. But the realization is dawning that implementing the new law will be really, really hard. New York is boldly going where no state has gone before … It will take a great deal of sweat and treasure (no one knows just how much), as well as a continuation of the political will that brought us to this point.”
We still do not know how much sweat and treasure will be required, but …
Climate Chauvinism: Rethinking Loss & Damage, Nadia B. Ahmad, Victoria Beatty
Climate Chauvinism: Rethinking Loss & Damage, Nadia B. Ahmad, Victoria Beatty
Faculty Scholarship
No abstract provided.
Intended Injury: Transferred Intent And Reliance In Climate Change Fraud, Wes Henricksen
Intended Injury: Transferred Intent And Reliance In Climate Change Fraud, Wes Henricksen
Faculty Scholarship
No abstract provided.
Greening The Old New Deal: Strengthening Rural Electric Cooperative Supports And Oversight To Combat Climate Change, Gabriel Pacyniak
Greening The Old New Deal: Strengthening Rural Electric Cooperative Supports And Oversight To Combat Climate Change, Gabriel Pacyniak
Faculty Scholarship
New Deal cooperatives succeeded in electrifying rural America when for-profit utilities would not. Today, however, rural electric cooperatives are lagging behind when it comes to meeting the challenge of climate change. Cooperatives have collectively been slower to embrace the shift to low-carbon electricity than for-profit and municipal utilities and have served as a drag on state and federal clean energy and climate policies. This is partially because of the structural differences between cooperatives and other utilities, but also because of a weak and under-determined federal and state regulatory structure. A few cooperatives in Colorado and New Mexico are seeking to …
Regulatory Cooperation In International Trade And Its Transformative Effects On Executive Power, Elizabeth Trujillo
Regulatory Cooperation In International Trade And Its Transformative Effects On Executive Power, Elizabeth Trujillo
Faculty Scholarship
As international trade receives the brunt of local discontent with globalization trends and recent changes by the Trump administration have put into question the viability of such trade arrangements moving forward, there has been a clear trend in using international trade fora for managing regulatory barriers on economic development. This paper will discuss this recent trend in international trade toward increased regulatory cooperation through the creation of formalized transnational regulatory bodies, such as the U.S.-EU Regulatory Cooperation Body that was being discussed in the TTIP negotiations and comparable ones in the Canadian-EU Trade Agreement as well as U.S.-Mexico and U.S.- …
Constitutional Challenges And Regulatory Opportunities For State Climate Policy Innovation, Felix Mormann
Constitutional Challenges And Regulatory Opportunities For State Climate Policy Innovation, Felix Mormann
Faculty Scholarship
This Article explores constitutional limits and regulatory openings for innovative state policies to mitigate climate change by promoting climate-friendly, renewable energy. In the absence of a comprehensive federal policy approach to climate change and clean energy, more and more states are stepping in to fill the policy void. Already, nearly thirty states have adopted renewable portfolio standards that create markets for solar, wind, and other clean electricity. To help populate these markets, a few pioneering states have recently started using feed-in tariffs that offer eligible generators above-market rates for their clean, renewable power.
But renewable portfolio standards, feed-in tariffs, and …
Climate Change And Human Trafficking After The Paris Climate Agreement, Michael Gerrard
Climate Change And Human Trafficking After The Paris Climate Agreement, Michael Gerrard
Faculty Scholarship
Climate change is a major contributor to migration and displacement. Persistent drought forced as many as 1.5 million Syrian farmers to move to overcrowded cities, contributing to social turmoil and ultimately a civil war that drove hundreds of thousands of people to attempt to cross the Mediterranean into Europe. Drought also worsened refugee crises in the Sahel, the Horn of Africa and other parts of the continent. Climate change can cause displacement in multiple ways. No reliable estimates exist of the number of people who will be displaced partly or wholly by climate change, due to uncertainties concerning the rate …
Us Federal Climate Change Law In Obama’S Second Term, Michael B. Gerrard, Shelley Welton
Us Federal Climate Change Law In Obama’S Second Term, Michael B. Gerrard, Shelley Welton
Faculty Scholarship
This commentary details the United States’ progress in advancing climate change law since President Barrack Obama’s re-election in 2012, in spite of congressional dysfunction and opposition. It describes how the Obama administration is building upon earlier regulatory efforts by using existing statutory authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from both new and existing power plants. It also explains the important role the judiciary has played in facilitating more robust executive actions, while at the same time courts have rejected citizen efforts to force judicial remedies for the problem of climate change. Finally, it suggests some reasons why climate change has …
Harmonizing Climate Change Policy And International Investment Law: Threats, Challenges And Opportunities, Daniel M. Firger, Michael Gerrard
Harmonizing Climate Change Policy And International Investment Law: Threats, Challenges And Opportunities, Daniel M. Firger, Michael Gerrard
Faculty Scholarship
This chapter responds to a chorus of commentary about the potential for conflict between the international investment law regime and an array of national and international actions being undertaken to mitigate and adapt to global climate change. Contrary to conventional wisdom, while some climate-friendly regulations may indeed be facially incompatible with the obligations imposed on states by typical international investment agreements (IIAs), many climate policies – especially those related to clean energy finance and technology transfer – involve principles common to foreign investment law and are largely compatible with that regime. Moreover, pending the unlikely negotiation of a single global …