Law Commons^™

The Renewable Power Of The Mine, Nicolas Maennling, Perrine Toledano

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Access to affordable and reliable energy is key for the mining sector and with rising demand for minerals and falling ore grades, energy demand is estimated to increase by 36% by 2035. Today, energy produced and procured by mining companies is mostly fossil fuel based. This will have to change if the sector is to contribute to the decarbonization of the world economy, needed for countries to meet the target adopted at the Paris Agreement of keeping global temperatures from rising more than 1.5-2 degrees Celsius.

At the same time, the costs of solar, wind and battery storage systems have …

Submission: 2018 Legislative Review Of Export Development Canada, Sara Seck, Keith Macmaster, Penelope Simons

Articles, Book Chapters, & Popular Press

This submission to the 2018 review of Export Development Canada is informed in part by a conference and policy meeting that we hosted in October 2017 on the subject of extractive industries and the human rights of women and girls, at the Human Rights Resource Education Centre in Ottawa. This submission will reflect on some of the insights that emerged from the conference and policy meeting, as well as our own prior and subsequent research. Our submission will focus primarily on Theme 5: Corporate Social Responsibility and Human Rights, which asks whether, in fulfilling its mandate, EDC reflects the expectations …

Pennsylvania Gas: Trusts, Takings, And Judicial Temperaments, Joshua Ulan Galperin

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

Perhaps it is their role in our survival, or our economic growth, or the environment. Whatever the reason, energy and natural resource conflicts seems to be unique in the way they can drive significant doctrinal change even outside of energy and natural resource law. Pennsylvania has been a fountainhead of these conflicts. In 1921, Pennsylvania’s Kohler Act and lesser known Fowler Act, which sought to protect surface owners from anthracite coal mine subsidence and to increase tax revenue from anthracite mining, ignited the legal wrangling that eventually led to Pennsylvania Coal Co. v. Mahon. That U.S. Supreme Court decision transformed …

Appeal No. 0907: Donald E. Wood, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Order 2015-345 (Financial Assurance)

Appeal No. 0964: Kevin Simballa, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Order 2018-231 (Auer North Unit; Hilcorp Energy)

Appeal No. 0930: M-I L.L.C. Dba M-S Swaco, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Order 2016-267 (Temporary Authorization; Strasburg Facility)

How International Oil Companies Could Assist The Republic Of Cyprus To Achieve The Sustainable Development Goals: A Conversation Starter, Andreas Tornaritis, Perrine Toledano

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

This policy paper is addressed to International Oil Companies (IOCs), public officials and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) involved in the natural gas industry in Cyprus. There is currently no conversation happening in Cyprus on how the oil and gas industry could help Cyprus achieve their Sustainable Development Goals. Therefore, this paper hopes to initiate a debate and conversation around this topic. It provides an overview of the ways in which IOCs operating in Cyprus could contribute towards the sustainable development of the natural gas industry and assist the Republic of Cyprus to achieve a number of their 2030 Sustainable Development Goals …

The Fine Print Of The Mexican Energy Reform, Guillermo J. Garcia Sanchez

Faculty Scholarship

Five years ago, when Mexico transformed its energy sector, most commentators were worried about the government’s capacity to implement the reform. What would the upstream contracts look like? Would the auctions be transparent? How would international companies react? After two successful auction rounds, 107 signed contracts, and the creation of viable regulatory agencies to manage and monitor the reform agenda, the questions have changed. Today, Mexico’s capacity to implement energy reforms and attract foreign investment is no longer in doubt. Today, the most pressing questions about the reform concern its long-term sustainability. Can it survive the Mexican electoral cycles? Will …

Get Out From Under My Land! Hydraulic Fracturing, Forced Pooling Or Unitization, And The Role Of The Dissenting Landowner, Heidi Gorovitz Robertson

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

This article addresses the legal circumstances arising when a state agency authorizes oil and gas production operations beneath a landowner’s land against that landowner’s wishes. One might assume that, if a landowner wants to preserve his or her land from oil and gas development, the landowner could simply refuse to allow drilling to occur beneath the land. However, neighbors may want to develop the oil and gas resources beneath their own land. To satisfy the neighbors’ wishes, an oil and gas producer must assemble mineral production rights on or beneath enough contiguous land to satisfy state spacing and acreage requirements …

The Curious Policy Implications Of In Re Semcrude: Do Crude Oil Markets Need A Volcker Rule?, Joseph A. Schremmer

Faculty Scholarship

In the summer of 2008 the nation's largest and fastest growing midstream crude oil purchaser, SemCrude, declared bankruptcy. SemCrude's demise was not the result of a bear market but of its taste for risky options trading. The bankruptcy pitted the competing liens of thousands of unpaid oil and gas producers and royalty owners who sold their crude oil to SemCrude at the wellhead against those of SemCrude's lenders and the claims of downstream purchasers. The Bankruptcy Court for the Federal District of Delaware found none of the producers' lien rights to be perfected under applicable law and awarded priority to …

Community-Investor Negotiation Guide 2: Negotiating Contracts With Investors, Sam Szoke-Burke, Rachael Knight, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Tehtena Mebratu-Tsegaye, Marena Brinkhurst

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Deciding whether or not to allow an investor to use community lands and natural resources is one of the most important decisions a community can make. If an investment project is carried out in a respectful and inclusive way, it may help community members to achieve their development goals, which may include creating jobs and local economic opportunities. But investments come with risks. Investment projects may make the land that community members need for farming and other livelihood activities unavailable for some time. They may pollute local rivers, lakes, air, and soils, or block access to sacred areas or water …

Community-Investor Negotiation Guide 1: Preparing In Advance For Potential Investors, Rachael Knight, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Sam Szoke-Burke, Tehtena Mebratu-Tsegaye, Marena Brinkhurst

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Deciding whether or not to allow an investor to use community lands and natural resources is one of the most important decisions a community can make. If an investment project is carried out in a respectful and inclusive way, it may help community members to achieve their development goals, which may include creating jobs and local economic opportunities. But investments come with risks. Investment projects may make the land that community members need for farming and other livelihood activities unavailable for some time. They may pollute local rivers, lakes, air, and soils, or block access to sacred areas or water …

The King Is Dead, Patrick Mcginley

Law Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Appeal No. 0955: Ms. Kelly M. Rahach, Trustee, Rahach Revocable Trust, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Orders 2018-45, 2018-87 & 2-18-88 (Old Farm Units; Chesapeake Exploration, LLC)

Appeal No. 0956: Ms. Kelly M. Rahach, Trustee, Rahach Revocable Trust, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Orders 2018-45, 2018-87 & 2-18-88 (Old Farm Units; Chesapeake Exploration, LLC)

Appeal No. 0955: Ms. Kelly M. Rahach, Trustee, Rahach Revocable Trust, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Orders 2018-45, 2018-87 & 2-18-88 (Old Farm Units; Chesapeake Exploration, LLC)

Appeal No. 0952: Patrick Hunkler, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Order 2018-13 (Surratt Unit) (Chesapeake Exploration, LLC)

Appeal No. 0954: Patrick Hunkler, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Order 2018-42 (Keller Unit) (Chesapeake Exploration, LLC)

Appeal No. 0953: George Jr. & Karen L. Dudich, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Order 2018-13 (Surratt Unit; Chesapeake Exploration, LLC)

Appeal No. 0963: Adams Oil & Gas, Llc, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Order 2018-124

Appeal No. 0959: Thelma Schwender, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Order 2018-94 (McKeegan South Unit: Gulfport Energy Corporation)

Appeal No. 0949: Christ Community Church, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Alleged Violation of O.R.C. §1509.11

Appeal No. 0958: Adams Oil & Gas, Llc, V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Order 2018-89 (Plug Order; Hartline Richard Unit #1 Well)

Tax Expenditure And The Treatment Of Tax Incentives For Investment, Agustin Redonda, Santiago Diaz De Sarralde, Mark Hallerberg, Lise Johnson, Ariel Melamud, Ricardo Rozemberg, Jakob Schwab, Christian Von Haldenwang

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Governments use tax expenditures to boost investment, innovation and employment. However, these schemes are largely opaque, costly and often ineffective in reaching their stated goals. They also frequently trigger unwanted side effects. In order to improve the performance of these tools, the authors present three concrete policy proposals: First, governments should increase transparency on tax benefits. G20 members should take the lead on this with frequent and comprehensive tax expenditure reports. Second, G20 governments should improve the design of tax incentives with the aim of minimizing the generation of windfall profits and negative spillover effects within and across (in particular, …

Implementing The Ahafo Benefit Agreements: Seeking Meaningful Community Participation At Newmont’S Ahafo Gold Mine In Ghana, Benjamin Boakye, Maggie M. Cascadden, Jordan Kuschminder, Sam Szoke-Burke, Eric Werker

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

In 2008, ten communities in the Brong Ahafo region of Ghana entered into agreements with Newmont Ghana to govern company-community relations, ensure local job creation, and share the benefits of the company’s mining operations. Ten years later, this report, co-authored by Canadian International Resources and Development Institute (CIRDI), African Center for Energy Policy (ACEP), CCSI, and ISP, looks at the communities’ experience of those agreements and suggests how the agreements might be improved. Though the agreements were celebrated for their attempts to include all stakeholders in decision-making, challenges remain around representation, consultation, and participation. New entities established to facilitate multi-stakeholder …

Appeal No. 0948: Carolyn Robinson V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Review of Chief's Order 2017-255 (PA19B Unit; Gulfport Energy Corporation)

Property Provisions Of The Joint Operating Agreement: An Update For The New 2015 Form Joa, Alex Ritchie, Gary B. Conine

Faculty Scholarship

The joint operating agreement (JOA) in the oil and gas industry helps coordinate joint operation efforts that facilitate exploration and unitization of tracts, and conservation of a depleting resource. Professor Conine’s 1988 article expanded, limited, and defined the property interests of the parties both inside and outside the contract area. This article is an update to those prior works with greater emphasis on the 1989 Form JOA, cases and developments since its publication, and the implications of the revisions to the JOA in the new 2015 Form JOA published by the American Association of Professional Landmen (AAPL).

The purposes of …

Identity-Based Conflicts In Public Policy: The Case Of Hydraulic Fracturing Policy In Pennsylvania, Alison Peck

Law Faculty Scholarship

Americans are experiencing a communication crisis in public policy-a crisis that has become especially acute since the November 2016 elections. Research shows that Americans increasingly treat their policy views as constitutive of their identities and separate themselves from other groups based on these identities. New solutions are needed in the lawmaking process to soften participants' hardening of their own identities and negative characterizations of other groups. This Article studies one controversy that has proven to be entrenched, if not yet intractable, in many jurisdictions: hydraulic fracturing. The Article examines advances made by scholars of conflict resolution and peace and conflict …

Il Contributo Delle Compagnie Oil & Gas Nel Raggiungimento Degli Obiettivi Energetici E Climatici (How Oil And Gas Companies Can Help Meet The Global Goals On Energy And Climate Change), Lisa E. Sachs, Nicolas Maennling, Perrine Toledano

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Nel settembre 2015, i governi di tutto il mondo hanno adottato17 Obiettivi di Sviluppo Sostenibile (Sustainable Development Goals – SDG) e, pochi mesi dopo – a dicembre – hanno firmatol’Accordo di Parigi. Queste azioni sono la riprova delrafforzamento del consenso globalecirca la necessità di frenare il cambiamento climatico indotto dalle attività antropiche e dipromuovere uno sviluppo sostenibilesu scala mondiale. I due concetti sono infatti strettamente legati: l’urgenza di affrontare il cambiamento climatico va inquadrata nella cornice degli sforzi globali tesi a ridurre la povertà, promuovere la crescita economica, rispettare i diritti umani e di inclusione sociale.

On September 2015, governments …

Costs And Benefits Of Investment Treaties: Practical Considerations For States, Lise Johnson, Jesse Coleman, Brooke Guven, Lisa E. Sachs

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

This paper analyzes the expected benefits of investment treaties, including: increased inward investment, increased outward investment, and depoliticization of investment disputes. It then considers evidence of the costs of investment treaties, including: litigation, liability, reputational cost, reduced policy space, distorted power dynamics, reduced role for domestic law-making, and uncertainty in the law. The authors set forth practical steps that states can take relating to both existing treaties as well as future treaties with an objective of increasing desired benefits and decreasing unexpected and high costs of investment treaties.