Law Commons^™

Delegated Agency Authority To Address Chemicals Of Emerging Concern: Epa’S Strategic Use Of Emergency Powers To Address Pfas Air Pollution, Robert L. Glicksman, Johanna Adashek

GW Law Faculty Publications & Other Works

PFAS are a class of chemicals that pose some of the most serious and multifaceted health and environmental threats of the past century. Manufactured since the 1940s, used in everyday products from non-stick cookware, to fire-fighting foams, to makeup and shaving cream, and found in even the most remote parts of the world, PFAS are ubiquitous. The most thoroughly-studied PFAS have demonstrable serious health effects that include reproductive and developmental dysfunctions, interference with the body’s hormonal and immune systems, suppression of vaccine responsiveness, and links to various types of cancers. In response to scientists’ identification of the multitude of health …

The Particle Problem: Using Rcra Citizen Suits To Fill Gaps In The Clean Air Act, Kurt Wohlers

Michigan Law Review

While the Clean Air Act has done a substantial amount for the environment and the health of individuals in the United States, there is still much to be done. For all its complexity, the Act has perpetuated systemic inequities and allowed harms to fall more heavily on low-income communities and communities of color. This is no less true for particulate matter pollution, which is becoming worse by the year and is a significant cause of illness and premature death. This Note argues that particulate pollution, traditionally only regulated on the federal level within the ambit of the Clean Air Act, …

Preventing Emissions From Slipping Through The Cracks: How Collaboration On New Technologies To Detect Violations And Minimize Emissions Can Efficiently Enforce Existing Clean Air Act Regulations, Kathryn Caballero

Journal Articles

The link between air pollution and poor public health is well known and has been farther documented during the COVID-19 pandemic, 1 but EPA has outdated methods and rules to detect air emissions. Enforcing existing environmental regulations presents challenges because the detection and monitoring technologies identified in the regulations, or the regulation language itself, may not sufficiently identify environmental pollution, let alone complex environmental fraud. How can EPA best use new technologies and concepts to detect violations, with the intent of minimizing emissions, to improve human health and environmental outcomes during the lengthy process of drafting and publishing new regulations? …

Congestion Pricing And The Opportunity To Confront New York City's Air Quality Emergency, Chad Hughes

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

Poor air quality in New York City is a public health emergency that disproportionately harms the city’s most vulnerable populations. Recent studies have found that exposure to particulate matter pollution previously thought “safe” causes significant damage to perhaps every organ of the human body. While New York City has reduced particulate matter exposure over the last decade, progress has stalled. In fact, climate change, the shift in the automobile market from sedans to SUVs and “light” trucks, and the federal pullback of environmental enforcement under Trump suggest that air pollution in New York City is likely to worsen.

While the …

Reimagining Exceptional Events: Regulating Wildfires Through The Clean Air Act, Emily Williams

Washington Law Review

Wildfires are increasing in both frequency and severity due to climate change. Smoke from these fires causes serious health problems. Land managers agree that prescribed burns help mitigate these negative consequences. Prescribed burns are lower-intensity fires that are intentionally ignited and managed for an ecological benefit. They reduce the amount of smoke produced and limit wildfire damage to natural systems and human property.

The Clean Air Act (CAA) is designed to regulate air pollution to protect public health, yet it exempts wildfire smoke through the exceptional events designation while imposing strict regulations on prescribed burns. Congress and the Environmental Protection …

Environmental Law And Air Pollution In U.A.E. - Prof. Maged Rageb El-Helw, Prof. Majed Ragheb Ei-Helw

UAEU Law Journal

The serious impact of air pollution is of great concern to both citi­zens and authorities of all communities in the world. Every bod y hopes to breathe clean air, and every government wishes to keep its country as environmentally pure as possible, free from any kind of pollution , with a heal thy clear atmosphere . However, industrial processes, power generation, motor vehicles, burning of wastes and other sources of pollution tend to pollute the air to which the general population is exposed in almost all countries. This brief study is concerned with air pollution in the United Arab Emirates …

Transit-Oriented Development: The Quest For Sustainable Cities In The Age Of The Automobile, Franklyn P. Salimbene, William P. Wiggins

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

During the early and mid-twentieth century the automobile captured the imagination of the American public. Superhighways, which were the vision, became the reality with the promise of speedy and safe travel. During this visioning, little attention was given to the impacts the highway system would have on urban America. Of course, by the end of the century the impacts were quite clear and distressing. Traffic congestion and air pollution became, and now are, among the most challenging aspects of life in American cities. In contemplating measures to alleviate the negative effects of these twin challenges, federal, state, and local agencies, …

The Law Of Enhanced Weathering For Carbon Dioxide Removal: Volume 2 – Legal Issues Associated With Materials Sourcing, Romany M. Webb

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Achieving the Paris Agreement’s goal of limiting the increase in global average temperatures well below 2°C, and ideally to 1.5°C, above pre-industrial levels will likely require the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. This could be achieved in various ways, including by enhancing natural weathering processes in which carbon dioxide reacts with silicate-based rocks, eventually forming carbonate minerals (e.g., limestone). Research suggests that the amount of carbon dioxide sequestered through this natural process can be increased by grinding silicate-rich minerals (e.g., olivine) or rocks (e.g., dunite) to increase their surface area and then spreading the powder over land or …

How Biden’S Environmental Policies Will Affect New York, Michael B. Gerrard, Edward Mctiernan

Faculty Scholarship

As this column has previously discussed, President Joe Biden’s environmental policies are a sharp reversal of those of former President Donald Trump. Today’s column spotlights how this change will affect New York state and New York City.

Using New York Law To Advance Equity In The Transportation & Climate Initiative Program, Hillary Aidun, Ama Francis, Michael B. Gerrard

Faculty Scholarship

Reducing pollution from the transportation sector is one of the most important steps to sustaining a livable climate. The transportation sector is the leading source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in both the United States and New York. Cars, trucks and buses also emit other harmful air pollutants that more immediately contribute to public health threats such as asthma, heart disease, and premature death.

Whither The Regulatory "War On Coal"? Scapegoats, Saviors, And Stock Market Reactions, Cary Coglianese, Daniel E. Walters

Faculty Scholarship

Complaints about excessive economic burdens associated with regulation abound in contemporary political and legal rhetoric. In recent years, perhaps nowhere have these complaints been heard as loudly as in the context of U.S. regulations targeting the use of coal to supply power to the nation’s electricity system, as production levels in the coal industry dropped by nearly half between 2008 and 2016. The coal industry and its political supporters, including the president of the United States, have argued that a suite of air pollution regulations imposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency during the Obama administration seriously undermined coal companies’ …

California’S Fight For Clean Air, Laura Tracey

Environmental Law Journal blog

Visible air pollution, known colloquially as “smog,” is responsible for clouding the horizons of cities all over the world. Smog forms when nitrous oxides react with sunlight, creating airborne particles which contribute to global warming and harm the health of humans, animals, and plant life. Car exhaust is one of the biggest contributors of nitrous oxide, and specific geographic and climate patterns can exacerbate the effects of the resulting smog. With approximately 14.5 million registered vehicles in the state and a climate perfect for harboring air pollution, most Californians have seen the telltale hazy skyline at some point in their …

Whither The Regulatory “War On Coal”? Scapegoats, Saviors, And Stock Market Reactions, Cary Coglianese, Daniel E. Walters

All Faculty Scholarship

Complaints about excessive economic burdens associated with regulation abound in contemporary political and legal rhetoric. In recent years, perhaps nowhere have these complaints been heard as loudly as in the context of U.S. regulations targeting the use of coal to supply power to the nation’s electricity system, as production levels in the coal industry dropped by nearly half between 2008 and 2016. The coal industry and its political supporters, including the president of the United States, have argued that a suite of air pollution regulations imposed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency during the Obama administration seriously undermined coal companies’ …

The Law Of Enhanced Weathering For Carbon Dioxide Removal, Romany M. Webb

Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Despite scientists’ dire warnings about the catastrophic impacts of climate change, the greenhouse gases that cause it continue to be emitted in substantial amounts. While there is no question that deep, across the board cuts in greenhouse gas emissions are essential, many scientists now agree that simply cutting future emissions will not be enough. It will also be necessary to remove previously-emitted greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. This paper explores one greenhouse gas removal technique – enhanced weathering – which involves spreading finely ground silicate rocks or other materials with similar chemical composition over land or ocean waters. The materials …

Direct Air Capture: An Emerging Necessity To Fight Climate Change, Michael B. Gerrard

Faculty Scholarship

The Paris Agreement of 2015 declared that we must keep global average temperatures well below 2.0°C (3.6°F) above preindustrial levels, and as close to 1.5°C as possible. However, a 2018 report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) showed that even 2.0°C would be catastrophic; 1.5°C should be the firm goal. We are now around 1.0°C and are already seeing wildfires, hurricanes, inland precipitation, and other events of unprecedented magnitude.

Environmental Racism In St. Louis, Thomas Harvey, John Mcannar, Michael-John Voss, Dutchtown South Community Corporation, Action St. Louis, Sierra Club

All Faculty Scholarship

This report calls out environmental racism-"the disproportionate impact of environmental hazards on people of color"1-in St. Louis. While these disparities have been part of the long-standing discriminatory and profit-driven policies and practices known too well by black St. Louisans, the issue of environmental racism has rarely been addressed in the City.

At least three recent reports- For the Sake of All,2 Segregation in St. Louis: Dismantling the Divide,3 and Equity lndicators4-document the heavy health, economic, and quality of life burdens that the St. Louis region imposes on its black residents. This report complements those by focusing on the burdens related …

New York’S New Congestion Pricing Law, Michael B. Gerrard, Edward Mctiernan

Faculty Scholarship

In the biggest change in local transportation policy in a generation, maybe two, “congestion pricing” will be instituted in Manhattan’s Central Business District in early 2021. It is the first action in decades that could actually lower traffic congestion, and that could provide a stable funding base for the capital program of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA). It also transfers considerable power from the Mayor to the Governor.

Visibility Protection Under The Clean Air Act, Arnold W. Reitze Jr.

Utah Law Faculty Scholarship

The Clean Air Act’s (CAAs) visibility protection program was created in 1977 and expanded in 1990. It applies to states with sources of air emissions that impact 156 Federal Class I areas, which include national parks and wilderness areas. Such states are required to develop haze implementation plans (SIPs) to control emissions in order to restore natural visibility in Class I areas. Initially, large stationary sources that began operating between 1962 and 1977 were to install the Best Available Retrofit Technology (BART) based on regulations issued by EPA. This process resulted in complex rules, litigation, and political maneuvering. Subsequently, the …

A Gap In Causation? Punishing Polluters For Contributing To Climate Change & Increasing Violent Crime, Nicolette Pellegrino

Pace Environmental Law Review

Climate change will lead to an increase in violent crime. More rapes and violent felonies occur during the warm summer months than in cooler temperatures. As climate change progresses, there will be longer summers, higher temperatures, and thus, more violent crime. This Note examines whether American sanctions of environmental crimes that contribute to climate change should become more stringent given what we now know about the violent consequences of climate change. Part II of this Note describes the history and scientific evidence which proves that rising temperatures increase the rate of violent crimes. Part III reviews current regulations that deal …

Breathing Air With Heft: An Experiential Report On Environmental Law And Public Health In China, Erin Ryan

Scholarly Publications

This article explores the gritty intersections of daily life and environmental law in modern China, an industrial powerhouse still struggling to reconcile economic opportunity with breathable air, clean water, healthy food, and safe products. With comparative perspective on analogous challenges in the United States, the article reports on these critical domestic challenges for China at a pivotal moment in its reemergence as a dominant world power. China’s continued geopolitical rise may well hinge on its ability to respond successfully to the environmental causes of growing social unrest. In 2011, in the midst of this maelstrom, I brought my husband, young …

Eme Homer City Generation, L.P. V. E.P.A.: Restraining The Federal Government's Leadership Role In Stopping Interstate Air Pollution, Matt Jones

Oklahoma Journal of Law and Technology

No abstract provided.

Concrete Manufacturers And The Regulatory Role Of The Bay Area Air Quality Management District, Golden Gate University School Of Law

Environmental Law and Justice Clinic

This report discusses the results of an investigation into concrete manufacturers in the San Francisco Bay Area, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District’s (BAAQMD) handling of the concrete plants’ air pollution violations and the agency’s failure to follow its own enforcement guidelines.

The investigation focused on three concrete manufacturers operating in the City of San Francisco and around the Bay Area because they generate harmful particulate matter: Cemex Construction Materials Pacific, LLC (Cemex), Central Concrete Supply Co., Inc. (Central), and Hanson Aggregates Mid-Pacific, Inc. (Hanson). Because asthma is prevalent in the Bayview Hunters-Point community, particulate matter pollution is of …

A Domestic Solution For Transboundary Harm: Singapore's Haze Pollution Law, Mahdev Mohan

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

Toxic ‘haze’ from fires, often burning over dry peatland in Indonesia, has affected millions across Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia, as well as parts of the Philippines and Thailand. For Singapore in particular, this slash-and-burn method of clearing land in Indonesia to cultivate crops such as oil palm has been an annual problem since 1972. However, 2015 stands out as the year Singapore experienced one of its worst episodes of haze pollution. Air quality based on the Pollutant Standards Index (PSI) plummeted to the ‘very unhealthy’ and ‘hazardous ranges’ for close to 50 days. Singapore suffered an estimated SGD $700 million …

Returning To The Tribal Environmental "Laboratory": An Examination Of Environmental Enforcement Techniques In Indian Country, Elizabeth Ann Kronk Warner

Michigan Journal of Environmental & Administrative Law

Governments, including tribes, need to protect one of humankind’s most valuable resources: the environment. In addition to environmental regulations, effective enforcement mechanisms are key to successful efforts to protect the environment. While much has been written about the environmental enforcement mechanisms of states and the federal government, little scholarly attention has been paid to how tribal governments are working to protect their environments. Given that there are 567 federally recognized tribes and approximately 56.2 million acres held in trust for tribes in the United States, such oversight is significant. This Article fills a scholarly void with a description of environmental …

Great Basin Resource Watch V. Bureau Of Land Management, Jody D. Lowenstein

Public Land & Resources Law Review

In Great Basin Resource Watch v. Bureau of Land Management, the Ninth Circuit invalidated the BLM’s environmental review, finding that the agency based its approval of a mining project on unsupported reasoning, inaccurate information, and deficient analysis. In negating the action, the court held that the BLM failed to take the hard look required by the National Environmental Policy Act.

Drilling For Common Ground: How Public Opinion Tracks Experts In The Debate Over Federal Regulation Of Shale Oil & Gas Extraction, Elizabeth Ann Glass Geltman

Publications and Research

Public interest in environmental and health impacts from shale oil and gas extraction (what the public calls “fracking”) is growing. Industry claims the public outcry against the new technology is not grounded in science. In February 2013, Resources for the Future (“RFF”) published a list of high priority “risk pathways” that experts from NGOs, academia, government, and industry all agreed were real concerns about fracking. This article used the risk matrix to evaluate whether public comments in dockets of federal agencies that proposed regulation concerning hydraulic fracturing tracked expert concern. The article found that the public tracked many of the …

Legal Pathways To Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions Under Section 115 Of The Clean Air Act, Michael Burger, Ann E. Carlson, Michael B. Gerrard, Jayni Foley Hein, Jason A. Schwartz, Keith J. Benes

Faculty Scholarship

Under President Barack Obama the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has promulgated a series of greenhouse gas emissions regulations, initiating the necessary national response to climate change. However, the United States will need to find other ways to reduce GHG emissions if it is to live up to its international emissions reduction pledges, and to ultimately lead the way to a zero-carbon energy future. This paper argues that the success of the recent climate negotiations in Paris provides a strong basis for invoking a powerful tool available to help achieve the country’s climate change goals: Section 115 of the Clean Air …

‘We Are The Monitors Now’: Experiential Knowledge, Transcorporeality And Environmental Justice, Dayna Scott

Articles & Book Chapters

Residents of pollution hotspots often take on projects in ‘citizen science’, or popularepidemiology, in an effort to marshal the data that can prove their experience of the pollution to the relevant authorities. Sometimes these tactics, such as pollution logs or bucket brigades, take advantage of residents’ spatially ordered and finely honed experiential and sensory knowledge of the places they inhabit. But putting that knowledge into conversation with law requires them to mobilize a new, ‘foreign’ set of tools, primarily oriented to the observation, measurement and sampling of pollution according to conventional scientific standards. Here, I employ qualitative empirical methods in …

Considerations Of Potential Tort Liability With Respect To Natural Draft Cooling Towers Associated With Steam-Electric Power Plants, Thomas D. Corkran

Akron Law Review

To prevent thermal pollution and to conserve our water supply, it appears that we must learn to live with natural draft cooling towers, at least for the next several decades. Proponents of natural draft cooling towers maintain that the possibility of localized fogging and icing is negligible, but the potential hazards of artificial salt fallout are very real. Also, there appears to be a trend developing in the law which could lead to an action against the operator of a natural draft cooling tower for aesthetic annoyances. There are several theories of action which might lie in such cases, but …

Billboards And Big Utilities: Borrowing Land-Use Concepts To Regulate "Nonconforming" Sources Under The Clean Air Act, Deepa Varadarajan

Deepa Varadarajan

Part II of this Note provides an overview of how the regulatory framework has developed with regard to federal control technology requirements governing major stationary sources. It focuses on the statutory language of the 1970 Clean Air Act and the 1977 Clean Air Act Amendments and subsequent administrative and judicial interpretations. Part III examines the development of the land-use doctrine governing the regulation of preexisting nonconforming uses and highlights its theoretical similarities to the air pollution context. Part IV looks specifically at the jurisprudence surrounding the use of amortization provisions in the zoning context. By and large, a court's acceptance …