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Water Law In The United States And Brazil--Climate Change & Two Approaches To Emerging Water Poverty, David N. Cassuto, Romulo S.R. Sampaio
Water Law In The United States And Brazil--Climate Change & Two Approaches To Emerging Water Poverty, David N. Cassuto, Romulo S.R. Sampaio
David N Cassuto
This article examines two of the major water legal regimes in the Americas-that of Brazil and the United States. Both countries have extensive wet and dry regions and both hydro-regimes face a significant threat from global warming. Brazil, for instance, is home to between eight and fifteen percent of the world's fresh water, and its fast-growing economy and population present major challenges in management and allocation. The U.S. also faces major water allocation problems resulting from past settlement policies; unsustainable reclamation projects; and also fast-growing domestic, industrial and agricultural demand. In the United States, water has traditionally been perceived as …
The Law Of Words: Standing, Environment, And Other Contested Terms, David Cassuto
The Law Of Words: Standing, Environment, And Other Contested Terms, David Cassuto
David N Cassuto
Friends of the Earth, Inc. v. Laidlaw Environmental Services (TOC), Inc., 528 U.S. 167 (2000), exposes fundamental incoherencies within environmental standing doctrine, even while it ostensibly makes standing easier to prove for plaintiffs in environmental citizen suits. According to Laidlaw, an environmental plaintiff needs only to show personal injury to satisfy Article III's standing requirement; she need not show that the alleged statutory violation actually harms the environment. This Article argues that Laidlaw's distinction between injury to the plaintiff and harm to the environment is nonsensical. Both the majority and dissent in Laidlaw incorrectly assume that there exists an objective …
Nastygram Federalism: A Look At Federal Self-Audit Policy, David N. Cassuto
Nastygram Federalism: A Look At Federal Self-Audit Policy, David N. Cassuto
David N Cassuto
This Article examines the evolution of EPA's audit policy, explores the reasons for states' dissatisfaction with it, and then discusses whether the federal policy should have been issued as a rule under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). Part I examines the evolution of the federal audit policy and then analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of the policy in its current form. Part II explores various types of evidentiary privilege and looks at the arguments for and against extending the privilege to audit reports. It then offers a similar analysis of the case for limited immunity, concluding that neither an expanded …
Keeping It Legal: Transboundary Management Challenges Facing Brazil And The Guarani, David Cassuto
Keeping It Legal: Transboundary Management Challenges Facing Brazil And The Guarani, David Cassuto
David N Cassuto
This paper examines the legal and ecological problems facing the Guarani Aquifer System. Because the majority of the Guarani Aquifer System underlies Brazil, the Brazilian legal regime forms the paper’s principal focus. The importance of the region makes the need for accurate information crucial. Yet relying on such information to manage a complex resource presents risks. Too often, the role of uncertainty in regulating is underplayed. Increasing knowledge over the resource demands categorizing “hard” and “soft” uncertainties, especially those presented by climate change. In addition, regulators must acknowledge the unitary nature of the aquifer while remaining sensitive to differing national …