Law Commons^™

Climate Change, Regulatory Fragmentation, And Water Triage, Robin K. Craig

Robin K. Craig

Fresh water is a regulatorily fragmented resource – that is, water is subject to multiple assertions of regulatory authority and to multiple types of use right claims that those authorities regulate. As fresh water supplies become increasingly unequal to task of meeting the multiple demands for both consumptive and in situ use, and as consumptive and in situ uses of water come increasingly into irreconcilable conflict, the various regulatory schemes governing water have also increasingly come into legal conflict. These courtroom battles have revealed many tensions, overlaps, and gaps in the overall governance of water as a natural resource, especially …

Zoning, Transportation, And Climate Change, John R. Nolon

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

On February 2, 2006, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) expressed the consensus of the scientific community that global warming is unequivocal and that its main driver is human activity. On April 7, 2007, the IPCC issued a second report detailing the likely consequences of climate change: widening droughts, more severe storm events, increased inland flooding, sea level rise, and consequent inundation of low lying lands. The Center for Climate Systems Research at Columbia University estimates that sea levels around New York City’s boroughs will increase by five inches by 2030, with some estimates predicting up to 12 inches …

The Implications Of Climate Change Litigation For International Environmental Law-Making, David B. Hunter

Working Papers

Climate advocates are increasingly raising specific climate change concerns before domestic courts, human rights tribunals, international commissions and other national and international decisionmaking bodies. Win or lose, these litigation strategies are significantly changing and enhancing the public dialogue around climate change. This article discusses the awareness-building impacts of climate litigation as well as related impacts such strategies may have on the development of climate law and policy. The article argues that litigation's focus on specific victims facing immediate threats from climate change has increased the political will to address climate change both internationally and nationally. It has also shifted the …

Climate Change As A Global Challenge, Nicholas A. Robinson

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Science Before Law: American Exceptionalism In The Kyoto Protocol And The Development Of A Global Norm Of Environmental Compliance, Elizabeth L. Chalecki

Elizabeth L Chalecki

This article will argue that a new norm of compliance with agreements is becoming customary with regard to the global environmental commons, particularly in the case of climate change and U.S. behavior towards the Kyoto Protocol. While the United States’ repudiation of its signature on the Protocol in 2001 was legal under the practice of traditional international law, this same practice is no longer sufficient in scope or in time to keep pace with the rapid advances in our scientific understanding of global environmental processes. Because every member of the international community can suffer significant harm from climate change, the …

Currents In Water Resources Law And Policy: How Is “Prior” Coping With New Stresses? [Outline], A. Dan Tarlock, David H. Getches

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

3 pages.

Includes bibliographical references

"A. Dan Tarlock, Distinguished Professor of Law and Director, Program in Environmental and Energy Law, Chicago-Kent College of Law"

"David H. Getches, Dean and Raphael J. Moses Professor of Natural Resources Law, University of Colorado Law School"

Slides: Dam Building And Removal On The Elwha: A Prototype Of Adaptive Mismanagement And A Tribal Opportunity, William H. Rodgers, Jr.

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

Presenter: William H. Rodgers, Jr., Stimson Bullitt Professor of Environmental Law, University of Washington School of Law

77 slides

Slides: The Future Public Law Of Private Ecosystems, J. B. Ruhl

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

Presenter: J.B. Ruhl, Florida State University Law School

18 slides

The Future Of Mineral Development On Federal Lands In The United States, John D. Leshy

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

11 pages.

Includes bibliographical references

"Outline of presentation of John D. Leshy, Harry D. Sunderland Distinguished Professor, U.C. Hastings College of the Law, Natural Resources Law center, June 7, 2007" (pp. 3-5)

"Leshy draft 4.27.07 For Natural Resources Law Center" (pp. 6-13)

Agenda: The Future Of Natural Resources Law And Policy, University Of Colorado Boulder. Natural Resources Law Center, Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

The Natural Resources Law Center's 25th Anniversary Conference and Natural Resources Law Teachers 14th Biennial Institute provided an opportunity for some of the best natural resources lawyers to discuss future trends in the field. The conference focused on the larger, cross-cutting issues affecting natural resources policy. Initial discussions concerned the declining role of scientific resource management due to the increased inclusion of economic-cost benefit analysis and public participation in the decision-making process. The effectiveness of this approach was questioned particularly in the case of non-market goods such as the polar bear. Other participants promoted the importance of public participation and …

Slides: Summary: Sources Of Stress And The Changing Context Of Natural Resources Law And Policy In The New West, William R. Travis

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

Presenter: Dr. William R. Travis, Department of Geography, University of Colorado at Boulder

43 slides

Some Preliminary Thoughts On Contrasts And Convergence In Environmental And Natural Resources Law, Karin P. Sheldon

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

16 pages.

Includes bibliographical references

Federalism And Natural Resources Policy [Outline], Robert L. Fischman

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

2 pages.

"Robert L. Fischman, Indiana University School of Law–Bloomington"

"Outline of Presentation"

Why Care About The Polar Bear?: Economic Analysis Of Natural Resources Law And Policy [Outline], Lisa Heinzerling

The Future of Natural Resources Law and Policy (Summer Conference, June 6-8)

1 page.

"Lisa Heinzerling, Georgetown Law School" -- Agenda

Climate Changes And The Poorest Nations: Further Reflections On Global Inequality, Ruth Gordon

The Climate of Environmental Justice: Taking Stock (March 16-17)

Presenter: Ruth Gordon, Professor of Law, Villanova University School of Law

3 pages.

Climate Justice: The Next Movement [Outline], Richard J. Lazarus

The Climate of Environmental Justice: Taking Stock (March 16-17)

Presenter: Richard J. Lazarus, Professor of Law, Georgetown University Law Center

2 pages.

Indigenous Peoples And Environmental Justice: The Impact Of Climate Change, Rebecca Tsosie

The Climate of Environmental Justice: Taking Stock (March 16-17)

Presenter: Rebecca Tsosie, Professor of Law, Arizona State University

1 page.

Agenda: The Climate Of Environmental Justice: Taking Stock, University Of Colorado Boulder. School Of Law

The Climate of Environmental Justice: Taking Stock (March 16-17)

On March 16-17, The Climate of Environmental Justice: Taking Stock conference gathered 125 academics and practitioners from around the country to consider the pressing issues facing low-income and/or communities of color that continue to be subjected to a disproportionate share of environmental maladies.

"Some people are more equal than others when it comes to bracing ourselves for the impacts of climate change," said conference organizer Professor Maxine Burkett. "Whether it's because poor folks lived in the lowest areas of New Orleans when Katrina floodwaters rushed in, or are less able to afford the cooling bill during increasingly frequent heat waves, …

The Perils Of A Half-Built Bridge: Risk Perception, Shifting Majorities, And The Nuclear Power Debat, Amanda Leiter

Amanda Leiter

Much of the risk perception literature relies on the important but unstated assumption that manipulating public opinion to conform to scientific assessments of risk could help the public and, in turn, policymakers make better decisions about whether and how to regulate. This paper argues that the assumption fails in the context of certain “multilayered” risks, or risks that pose tiered policy choices – not just whether to regulate in the first instance, but how to respond to derivative risks arising from the first set of regulatory changes. Examining the debate about the role of nuclear power in the United States’ …

The Perils Of A Half-Built Bridge: Risk Perception, Shifting Majorities, And The Nuclear Power Debat, Amanda Leiter

Amanda Leiter

Much of the risk perception literature relies on the important but unstated assumption that manipulating public opinion to conform to scientific assessments of risk could help the public and, in turn, policymakers make better decisions about whether and how to regulate. This paper argues that the assumption fails in the context of certain “multilayered” risks, or risks that pose tiered policy choices – not just whether to regulate in the first instance, but how to respond to derivative risks arising from the first set of regulatory changes. Examining the debate about the role of nuclear power in the United States’ …

Guest Perspective: Energy Efficiency And Conservation: The Most Cost-Effective Approach To Climate Change, John Dernbach

John C. Dernbach

No abstract provided.

Environmental Law In A Climate Change Age, David R. Hodas

David R. Hodas

No abstract provided.

Imagining The Unimaginable: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions, David R. Hodas

David R. Hodas

No abstract provided.

Legal And Policy Frameworks For Renewable Energy To Mitigate Climate Change, Xiaodong Wang

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.

Climate Change And The Clean Air Act, Lisa Heinzerling

University of San Francisco Law Review

This Article highlights the litigation before the Supreme Court in Massachusettes v. EPA, which was brought by a variety of states and other plaintiffs in order to mitigate the effects of climate change under the Clean Air Act. As such, it explores the relevant arguments before the Court, what the Court decided, and how that decision may affect the EPA's role in mitigating climate change.

Multilateral Climate Change Mitigation, Elizabeth Burleson

University of San Francisco Law Review

This Article highlights Society's inability to reach consensus on climate change mitigation has resulted in the tragedy of the commons, examines Humanity's ability to overcome a similar crisis through an international cooperative effort to reduce the ozone hole, and accordingly, explores critical elements of a legal framework for multilateral actions on climate stabilization.

The Scientific And International Context For Climate Change Initiatives, Stephanie B. Oshita Phd

University of San Francisco Law Review

This Article provides context for the examination of United States climate policy and litigation initiatives, including the current scientific understanding of climate change, international efforts to combat climate change both inside and outside of the UN framework, and suggests possible solutions to the climate change problem.

A Multiple-Strategy Approach To Solving The Energy Puzzle, Irma S. Russell

Faculty Journal Articles & Other Writings

This article describes the complex issues facing the energy needs and policies of the United States. The article notes that the role of the United States on the world stage and the health of the public and the environment depend on successfully solving the energy puzzle to harmonize economic development, sustainable use of the resources, and public safety. The article concludes that part of the difficulty of the debate may arise from an assumption that a single solution to the problem awaits and suggests that instead the only way forward is a policy of diversification and multiple strategies, encouraging conservation …

The Domestic Response To Global Climate Change: What Role For Federal, State, And Litigation Initiatives?, Alice Kaswan

University of San Francisco Law Review

This Article takes as given that climate change is a serious environmental problem that requires a legal response-a response that is likely to change the way we live. This Article evaluates the most significant existing federal and state measures. This Article not only highlights the key features of federal, state, and litigation initiatives; it also addresses their respective roles.

Climate Change And Federal Environmental Law, Lara Hansen, Christopher R. Pyke

Sustainable Development Law & Policy

No abstract provided.