Law Commons^™

The Paralysis Paradox And The Untapped Role Of Science In Solving “Big” “Environmental Problems, Jan G. Laitos, Christopher Ainscough

Sturm College of Law: Faculty Scholarship

Part I considers the daunting scope and extent of the environmental problem addressed by the article. The “problem” consists of an enormous number of abandoned mines and AMLs in the West, affecting numerous rivers and watersheds, where the cost of mine cleanup seems astronomical, and the source of the money to pay for the cleanup elusive. In Part I, probability theory is used to assess the true scope of the AML problem, by estimating the impacts and risks to people and their environment. Part II addresses the state of current law as it applies to abandoned hardrock mines. A review …