Environmental Law Commons^™

A Discussion With Epa's General Counsel Avi Garbow: Environmental Justice, Agency Priorities, And Employment, Avi S. Garbow, General Counsel

Environmental and Animal Law

The Center For International Law & Justice and Environmental Law Society present a discussion with Avi S. Garbow who, during his tenure as EPA General Counsel, has worked closely on the Clean Power Plan, Clean Water Rule and other initiatives.

The Unbearable Licence Of Being The Executive: A Response To Stacey’S Permanent Environmental Emergency, Bruce Pardy

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

This article responds to Jocelyn Stacey’s “The Environmental Emergency and the Legality of Discretion in Environmental Law.” In her article, Stacey attempts to establish the legitimacy of unfettered executive discretion to deal with environmental issues, but the justification that she provides is not up to the task. She asserts that all environmental issues are emergencies, but she does not explain why they are so. She proposes to resolve the problem of executive discretion by redefining the rule of law, thereby rendering it an empty shell. Environmental protection and the rule of law do not push in opposite directions. Instead, it …

Newsroom: Goldstein On Militia Occupation, Roger Williams University School Of Law

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.

The Environmental Emergency And The Legality Of Discretion In Environmental Law, Jocelyn Stacey

Osgoode Hall Law Journal

This article argues that environmental issues confront us as an ongoing emergency. The epistemic features of serious environmental issues – the fact that we cannot reliably distinguish ex ante between benign policy choices and choices that may lead to environmental catastrophe – are the same features of an emergency. This means that, like emergencies, environmental issues pose a fundamental challenge for the rule of law: They reveal the necessity of unconstrained executive discretion. Discretion is widely lamented as a fundamental flaw in Canadian environmental law, which undermines both environmental protection and the rule of law itself. Through the conceptual framework …

Nepa And The Northern Integrated Supply Project: Wielding The 'Paper Tiger' In The Tenth Circuit, Raymond Laws

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

National Conservation Area Designation: When You Need A Shovel, Not A Backhoe, Megan Gutwein

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Coal Barons And Ski Bums: An Unlikely Alliance? Exploring Potential Solutions To Waste Mine Methane, Baker Arena

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Challenges And Opportunities Of The Expiring Columbia River Treaty, Barbara Cosens

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Clear & Convincing: The Proper Evidentiary Standard For R.S. 2477 Claims, Blake Busse

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents, Colorado Natural Resources, Energy & Environmental Law Review

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Sinclair's Nightmare: Slapp-Ing Down Ag-Gag Legislation As Content-Based Restrictions Chilling Protected Free Speech, Jeffrey Vizcaino

Student Works

Over a century after its publication, Upton Sinclair’s 1906 novel, The Jungle, remains one of the most impactful pieces of investigative literature ever published. During 1904, in an effort to expose the heinous working conditions of Chicago’s meat packing industry, Sinclair went under disguise as a factory worker for seven weeks. While Sinclair’s purpose for The Jungle was to propel federal reform against inhumane work conditions, it was the first-hand depiction of the callous slaughtering and unsanitary processing of meat products which led to national uproar. Gaining the attention of national political leaders, including President Theodore Roosevelt, The Jungle …

Of Life And Limb: The Failure Of Florida's Water Quality Criteria To Test For Vibrio Vulnificus In Coastal Waters And The Need For Enhanced Criteria, Regulation, And Notification To Protect Public Health, Felicia Thomas

Student Works

The nefarious duo of warming oceans and rising sea levels has created a menacing yet lesser-known climate change-induced problem: an increase in sea-borne diseases. For most, the biggest concern when diving into the ocean is a possible, though exceedingly rare, shark encounter; however, it is the unexpected, unseen risk of Vibrio vulnificus that poses the greater danger. Part I of this paper discusses Vibrio vulnificus cases along the coasts of Florida, examining both the illnesses that were contracted through exposure of open wounds to seawater and those contracted through the consumption of raw oysters from the Gulf Coast. Part II …

A Shift In The Wind: Siting More Wind Power Projects Along Texas' 367-Mile Coast Of Gulf Winds, And Mitigating Potential Risk To Migratory Bird Populations, Oscar Burkholder

Student Works

Wind farm development in Texas is surging, making wind power Texas’ hottest energy prospect. Texas currently produces more wind power than any other state by a significant margin, and it keeps blowing through major milestones almost every year. Part II of this paper discusses the relationship between Texas and wind energy, examining the success of onshore wind energy in Texas, the uncertainty and challenges of offshore wind energy in the Gulf of Mexico, and possible room for improvement in Texas’ onshore wind farms. Part III analyzes Texas’ current legal framework, evaluating key federal involvement within Texas’ wind energy industry, and …

How The Public Trust Doctrine's Fiduciary Duty Requirement Requires States' Proactive Response To Promote Offshore Power Generation, Andrew S. Ballentine

Student Works

As the earth continues to warm and the impacts of that warming trend loom larger, the question becomes whether and to what degree do governments have responsibility to respond to that threat. The potential range of threats and impacts from climate change vary greatly and governments’ ability to respond, effectively and efficiently, exceeds that of the individual and therefore must fall on the greater collection of individuals. In the United States, one way that the collection of individuals is represented, albeit with limitations, is by the government that operates for the collective public good. This Article focuses on what responsibility …

Nepa—Substantive Effectiveness Under A Procedural Mandate: Assessment Of Oil And Gas Eiss In The Mountain West, John C. Ruple, Mark Capone

Wallace Stegner Center for Land, Resources, and the Environment publications

This paper empirically evaluates whether Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) for oil and natural gas field development projects lead to a significant reduction in environmental impacts. Based on our statistical analysis of projects within a four-state region, we conclude that EIS preparation does appear to produce final decisions that are substantially less impactive on the environment when compared to initially proposed projects. Impact reductions occur primarily between the Draft EIS and Final EIS, with minor reductions occurring between the Final EIS and Record of Decision. While reductions may be partially attributable to other legal requirements (such as Clean Air Act, Clean …

An Ode To Sea Turtles & Dolphins: Expanding Wto’S Mandate To Bridge The Trade-Environment Divide, Geary Choe

Cornell Law Library Prize for Exemplary Student Research Papers

Geary Choe’s ambitious paper showcased a diverse and sophisticated understanding of research in public international law and interdisciplinary sources.

Choe’s paper proposes expanding the World Trade Organization’s mandate to carve out a new exception for trade-restrictive measures in multilateral environmental agreements (MEAs). His process involved analyzing international conventions, WTO panel and appellate body reports as well as non-legal materials written by economists, environmentalists and non-governmental organizations. Choe used that research to examine the historical tension between the competing interests of trade vs. environment and concluded with original proposals of how to reconcile them within the WTO’s legal framework.

Most rewardingly, …

How Criminal Law Can Help Save The Environment, Rena I. Steinzor

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Emerging Legal And Institutional Responses To Sea-Level Rise In Florida And Beyond, David L. Markell

Scholarly Publications

No abstract provided.

Shreve V. Baltimore: A Municipal Misstep Leads To A City Forever Beautiful, Laura Tallerico

Legal History Publications

This paper explores municipal decision making in condemnation proceedings and whether or not the public use requirement protects individual property owners from poor municipal decision-making. When condemners are allowed to take in fee simple absolute, their decisions have lasting effects on property. The decisions of the Baltimore City government in its creation of a water system illustrate why some may be queasy about this. However, this may actually be desirable because it allows for municipalities, in particular, to both achieve the public purpose necessary at the time of condemnation and to improve in the future rather than go through the …

A Future For A Forgotten Predator: Assessment Of The Global And Regional Legal Frameworks For Protection And Recovery Of The Caribbean Sawfishes Pristis Pristis And Pristis Pectinata And Recommendations For The Course Forward, Olga Koubrak

LLM Theses

Two species of sawfish, Pristis pristis and Pristis pectinata, used to be common in the coastal waters of the Caribbean Region. However, due to direct and incidental fishing pressures, national and international trade in body parts, and habitat loss, the populations of these ecologically and culturally significant species have drastically declined. This thesis identifies and reviews global and regional, binding and non-binding legal instruments in effect in the Caribbean Region that encourage states to protect biodiversity in general or address identified threats to sawfishes specifically. Despite the presence of obligations that call upon states to adopt sawfish conservation and habitat …

Prioritizing Management And Protection Of The Colorado River's Environmental Resources, Colorado River Research Group

Books, Reports, and Studies

4 pages.

Improving Irrigation Water Uses For Agricultural And Environmental Benefits, Anne Castle, Amy Beattie, Zach Smith, Drew Peternell, Ted Kowalski

Books, Reports, and Studies

37 pages : color pictures, color maps.

Introduction -- Agricultural and environmental enhancements -- An ag and environmental enhancement program for Colorado -- Appendix A: Conservation case studies in Colorado -- Appendix B: Related Colorado water law -- Appendix C: Relevant laws from other states -- Appendix D: Legislative attempts to statutorily recognize conserved water -- Appendix E: The problem of vocabulary

The Coastal Zone Management Act’S Capacity To Spearhead Coastal Adaptation, Mila Buckner

UC Law Environmental Journal

No abstract provided.

Biagaweit: Securing Water From The Mighty River In The Snake River Basin Adjudication, Jeanette Wolfley

Faculty Scholarship

This symposium article describes the Shoshone and Bannock peoples journey to quantify their water rights in the SRBA. It begins with the Shoshone-Bannock Tribal cultural perspective on water and water rights. It then discusses the concept of tribal homelands and the water required and necessary for sustaining a tribally reserved home as guaranteed in the Fort Bridger Treaty of 1868, including a discussion of the Winters doctrine which affirms the treaty's promises. It concludes with a review of the Fort Hall Indian Water Rights Agreement. 'Biagaweit' is the Shoshone word for the Snake River. The mighty Snake River begins its …

A Shift In The Wind: Siting More Wind Power Projects Along Texas’ 367-Mile Coast Of Gulf Winds, And Mitigating Potential Risk To Migratory Bird Populations, Oscar Burkholder

Seattle Journal of Environmental Law

No abstract provided.

Beyond Baby Steps An Empirical Study Of The Impact Of Environmental Justice Executive Order 12898, Elizabeth Ann Glass Geltman, Gunwant Gill, Miriam Jovanovic

Publications and Research

This study evaluated the impact of Executive Order (EO) 12898 to advance environmental justice. We conducted a review evaluating the frequency and effective use of EO 12898 since execution with particular focus following President Obama’s Plan EJ 2014. We found that both EO 12898 and Plan EJ 2104 had little, if any, impact on federal regulatory decision making. To the extent federal agencies discussed EO 12898, most did so in boilerplate rhetoric that satisfied compliance but was devoid of detailed thought or analysis. In the 21st year, with the exception of the Environmental Protection Agency, very little federal regulatory activity …

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 …

Clean Power Policy In The United States, Joseph P. Tomain

Faculty Articles and Other Publications

Within the last year, the Obama administration has taken two significant and dramatic steps addressing the challenges of climate change and demonstrating a renewed leadership role for the US. First, as a signatory to the Paris climate agreements, the US has stepped forward to participate in that global effort after years of recalcitrance. The US, for example, signed the Rio Declaration in 1992 but five years later would not ratify the 1997 Kyoto Protocol. Now, though, the US has reversed course and has reentered the international climate conversation.

The second significant climate initiative came on the domestic front as the …

Regulation Of Fracking Is Not A Taking Of Private Property, Kevin Lynch

Sturm College of Law: Faculty Scholarship

As the use of fracking has spread during the recent oil and gas boom, inevitable conflicts have arisen between industry and its neighbors, particularly as fracking has moved into densely populated urban and suburban areas. Concerned over the impacts of fracking – such as risks to health and safely, diminished property values, air and water pollution, as well as noise, traffic, and other annoyances – many people have demanded a government response.

Government regulation of fracking has struggled to catch up, although in recent years many state and local governments have taken steps to reduce the impacts of fracking in …

Oil & Gas Drilling In National Parks, Elizabeth Ann Glass Geltman

Publications and Research

While a great deal of public attention addresses the Halliburton loophole of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and Bureau of Land Management efforts to regulate hydraulic fracturing on public lands, less attention has been paid to the National Park Service “9B Regulations,” which provide a national regulatory framework governing the exercise of nonfederal oil and gas rights in national parks. This article begins with a review of law pertaining to oil and gas drilling in national parks. The article examines the tension in striking a balance between environmental protection, conservation of national lands and achieving energy independence, including National …