Law Commons^™

Michael Bloomberg's Environmental Record, Bill De Blasio's Promises, Michael B. Gerrard

Faculty Scholarship

On Nov. 23, 2001, under the headline “Michael Bloomberg’s Environmental Agenda,” this column began, “The stun­ning victory of Michael R. Bloomberg in the Nov. 6 election means that City Hall will be occupied by a man who has no record in environmental affairs.” The column went on to summarize the promises found in Bloomberg’s campaign literature and other statements.

Now with Mayor Bloomberg’s term about to end and Bill de Blasio’s about to begin, we can compare the outgoing mayor’s accomplishments to his promises, and also look at what the incom­ing mayor has pledged.

Survey Of 2012 Cases Under State Environmental Quality Review Act, Michael B. Gerrard

Faculty Scholarship

The courts issued 55 decisions in 2012 under the State Environmen­tal Quality Review Act (SEQRA).1 As this annual survey shows, especially important decisions concerned the necessity of supplemental environmental impact statements (EISs), and the relationship of SEQRA to various federal laws.

The State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) was also busy. On Jan. 15, 2012, DEC adopted revised short and full environmental assessment forms, which are used in determining whether full EISs are needed. The new forms become effective on Oct. 7, 2013. They will be accompanied by workbooks and by an updated web-based geographic information system search engine to …

Reducing Legal Hurdles To Combined Heat And Power In New York, Michael B. Gerrard

Faculty Scholarship

Combined heat and power (CHP or cogeneration) is the simultane­ous production of electricity and thermal energy from a single fuel source. Most CHP systems in New York City use natural-gas fired turbines or reciprocating engines to generate electric­ity and then capture heat from the com­bustion generator’s exhaust stream and cooling systems.

Courts Rulings Accept Climate Science, Michael Gerrard

Faculty Scholarship

Viewers of certain television networks, readers of certain newspapers, and anyone visiting Capitol Hill would come away with the impression that there are serious questions about whether climate change is occurring and, if it is, whether it is mostly caused by human activity. One place where there are few such questions is the courts. In fact it appears that (with one lone exception in a dissent) not a single U.S. judge has expressed any skepticism, in a written opinion or dissent, about the science underlying the concern over climate change. To the contrary, the courts have uniformly upheld this science, …

Federal Executive Actions To Combat Climate Change, Michael B. Gerrard

Faculty Scholarship

“I urge this Congress to pursue a bipartisan, market-based solution to climate change, like the one John McCain and Joe Lieberman worked on together a few years ago. But if Congress won’t act soon to protect future generations, I will. I will direct my cabinet to come up with executive actions we can take, now and in the future, to reduce pollution, prepare our communities for the consequences of climate change, and speed the transition to more sustainable sources of energy.”
—President Barack Obama State-of-the-Union Message Feb. 12, 2013

In the current partisan atmosphere in Washington, there appears to be …