Law Commons^™

Environmental Federalism’S Tug Of War Within, Erin Ryan

Scholarly Publications

The intensity of federalism disputes reflects inexorable pressure on all levels of government to meet the increasingly complicated challenges of governance in an ever more interconnected world. Yet even as federalism dilemmas continue to erupt all from all corners, environmental law remains at the forefront of controversy. This chapter argues that environmental law is uniquely prone to federalism discord because it inevitably confronts the core question with which federalism grapples — who gets to decide? — in contexts where state and federal claims to power are simultaneously at their strongest. Environmental problems tend to match the need to regulate the …