Environmental Law Commons^™

Greenwashed Forest Management And Wildfire Resilience, Sarah A. Matsumoto

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

State Adoption Of A Constitutional Right To A Clean And Healthy Environment: Held V. Montana As A Success For Climate Litigation, Lara Andenoro

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Dire Straits In The Gulf: Using The Endangered Species Act To Better Protect The World's Rarest Whale From Industrial Threats, Aidan Bodeo-Lomicky

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Applying The Rights Of Nature To The Rights Of Animals: Comparing The Lake Erie Bill Of Rights To Happy The Elephant, Mason Liddell

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Front Matter, Colorado Environmental Law Journal

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Editor's Note, Colorado Environmental Law Journal

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Mining Association Position Statement On Indigenous Peoples: Respect For Their Rights Advanced, With Some Shortcomings, S. James Anaya

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Editor's Note, Emily Derrenbacker

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Table Of Contents, Colorado Environmental Law Journal

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Interrogating Marine Plastics Pollution Regulations: The Intended Roles Of The Global Plastics Treaty, Ndubuisi Augustine Nwafor

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Towards Multispecies Environmental Justice, Laura Street Cole

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Holding Fossil Fuel Producers Accountable In U.S. And Other Foreign Courts: A Climate Justice Pathway For Sierra Leone, Jamil Sahid Fofanah

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

The Environmental Cost Of Intelligence: Regulating The Climate Impact Of Artificial Intelligence, Emilee Calvin

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Still Silent: How The U.S. Regulatory Framework Fails To Address The Dangers Of Pesticides, Obie Johnson

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Ski Resorts And Rural Energy Resiliency: How Colorado’S Ski Industry Could Help Reduce Energy Vulnerability In Rural Mountain Communities, Jonathan Skule

Colorado Environmental Law Journal

No abstract provided.

Rulemaking Petitions In A World Without Deference To Agencies: A New Lease On Life?, Daniel E. Walters

Faculty Scholarship

Often overlooked in the study and practice of administrative law, rulemaking petitions are means by which interested persons can prompt federal agencies to implement the statutes they administer in particular ways. After the Supreme Court’s 2024 decisions in Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, 144 S. Ct. 2244 (2024), and Ohio v. Environmental Protection Agency, 144 S. Ct. 2040 (2024), rulemaking petitions are about to experience a renaissance—one that could reshape environmental law, should environmental advocates choose to leverage the procedure.

An Introduction To U.S. Groundwater Law: Domestic And Transboundary Considerations, Caleb Cook, Gabriel Eckstein

Faculty Scholarship

In light of the scientific and historical factors that have shaped the development of groundwater law and policy, this chapter seeks to provide a primarily descriptive account of its current state in the United States and to lay a foundation for future efforts to address gaps in the regime. Section 8B.02 considers the importance of groundwater in modern American society, with a particular focus on its uses and the threats these resources face. Section 8B.03 describes the U.S. framework for the domestic governance of groundwater resources. Section 8B.04 describes the mechanisms for transboundary governance of groundwater between the United States …

Designing A Victims’ Compensation System Amidst California’S Insurance Crisis: The Aftermath Of The 2025 Los Angeles Wildfires, Federica Simonelli

Cardozo Journal of Conflict Resolution

This Commentary will explore critical aspects necessary for creating victims’ compensation mechanisms capable of handling claims stemming from the 2025 Los Angeles wildfires from a theoretical perspective. Drawing from the successful examples of the 2020 PG&E Fire Victim Trust, the 2023 Maui Wildfires compensation schemes, and other forms of dispute resolution (such as mediation), this Commentary will demonstrate that the challenging fallouts of environmental disasters pose increased challenges and necessitate unique dispute system design to better respond to the need for fair and equitable solutions. These systems increasingly rely on settlement funds tailored to claimants’ specific needs and have proven …

Environmental Law—Relatively Impermanent Waters: The Need For State Regulation Of Isolated Wetlands In Arkansas After Sackett V. Environmental Protection Agency, Caroline E. O'Connor

University of Arkansas at Little Rock Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Legal Debate: Corner Crossing And Public Land Access, Kaden Leverenz

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Is it legal to cross from one corner of public land to an adjacent corner of public land across checkerboarded landscapes in the American West? This question regarding corner crossing has become one of the most prominent and unresolved issues in public land access. Although federal courts in Iron Bar Holdings v. Cape (2025) confirmed corner crossing, without touching or damaging private land, does not constitute trespass, the legal landscape still remains unsettled. Public land users play a significant role in shaping the direction of this issue, as demonstrated by past public mobilizations against large-scale land sell-offs. Therefore, this paper …

Zoning The Subsurface, Hannah Jacobs Wiseman, Anne Menefee, Seth Blumsack, Michael Helbing

Faculty Scholarship

The vast rock formations underlying the United States stand at an important Demsetzian turning point, at which the externalities of inadequately defined property rights justify the costs of solidifying formal property rights for this resource. This need arises from the growing scarcity of pore space (tiny openings) in subsurface rocks—property that is critical to address climate change. Efforts to mitigate and adapt to climate impacts require large-scale underground storage of carbon dioxide, water, and energy within the pore space of subsurface reservoirs. The subsurface will also continue to house millions of miles of pipelines, hundreds of thousands of waste disposal …

Environmental Law And Social Mistrust- How The Repeal Of The Chevron Doctrine May Hinder The Epa And More, Rebecca R. Collins

Honors Undergraduate Theses

I am specifically studying the effects of a recent Supreme Court decision will have on administrative law and specifically on the EPA. Simply put, the decision is likely going to foster distrust within the EPA and decisions that are made within environmental law, as the shift goes away from scientific experts, but to less educated legal professionals who interpret the laws. In the past, people thought of the initial Chevron decision as incredibly beneficial for scientific matters and for the environment. Chervon was removed recently with another Supreme Court decision that made this idea obsolete, removing professionals from the power …

Unveiling The Environmental Impact Of Large Language Models On Indigenous Communities: A Call For Action And Liability, Nina-Simone Edwards

Library Scholarship

Large Language Models (LLMs) have rapidly gained popularity for their language generation and comprehension capabilities, promising increased efficiency in various sectors. However, while celebrated for their transformative potential, LLMs exacerbate current climate issues. This Article highlights the detrimental environmental footprint of LLMs, with a focus on their role in escalating climate change and their disproportionate effects on Indigenous communities. These communities, closely tied to their land, bear the brunt of environmental degradation, further aggravated by LLM-induced emissions.

This Article first dissects the interplay between environmental justice and technological innovation, advocating for a reevaluation of the trust relationship between tribal nations …

A Critical Juncture: The Convergence Of Natural Resource Management And Tribal Sovereignty, Anna Aleta Butterfield

Graduate Student Portfolios, Professional Papers, and Capstone Projects

This portfolio reflects the work I’ve done in my four years as a dual degree student, pursuing a Master of Science in Environmental Studies and a juris doctorate degree, and focuses on policies and laws surrounding natural resource management. It touches on how those policies relate to and expand or constrict the exercise of sovereignty by indigenous populations.

This piece first considers the effects of plastic on salmon populations and those indigenous groups that rely on salmon for subsistence and cultural purposes. The remaining three pieces focus on various aspects of the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes - Montana Water …

Artificial Intelligence And Energy Democracy, Joel B. Eisen, Heather E. Payne

Law Faculty Publications

Artificial intelligence (AI) is quickly transforming many professional activities, and the electric grid has already started to see adverse impacts from its use, such as the burgeoning demand for electricity from data centers. This Article acknowledges these impacts, but also demonstrates that AI can be put to beneficial use on the grid. It proposes and describes a specific use of AI: assisting citizen intervenors in public utility commission (PUC) proceedings, who currently face barriers to participation due to the technical complexity and confidentiality imposed by monopoly utilities. The Article describes how AI can assist intervenors to overcome the barriers to …

Corporate Climate Targets: Science, Discretion, And Climate-Washing, Nadav Orian Peer

Publications

The use of corporate climate targets has exploded in recent years and now encompasses many of the world's largest and most profitable companies. In a corporate climate target, a company voluntarily commits to reducing its emissions in line with climate science and the Paris Agreement. The broad adoption of these targets raises important questions: are these commitments truly aligned with science in the way they are advertised, or do they raise "climate-washing" concerns; i.e., do they exaggerate the benefits and significance of the climate targets? This Article investigates the role that science actually plays within targets and explores different types …

Dirty Water, Breanna Booker, Michael S. Sinha

All Faculty Scholarship

Plastics are taking over. Every day, humans are exposed to plastic pollutants in a variety of ways. From the water we use to water crops in the field, to the water in our taps, to the liquids we drink from plastic containers, it can be found virtually anywhere you look. Not only is it everywhere in the environment, but it is also within us. It builds up in our bodies. Plastics have become a major public health concern; researchers estimate that the total healthcare cost related to plastic chemicals may be as much as $250 billion.[1]

Water has always …

Corporate Scenarios: Drawing Lessons From History, Madison Condon

Faculty Scholarship

As corporations are increasingly pressed to reveal information about their exposure to climate-related risks, they are often asked to undertake and disclose the outcome of “scenario analysis.” In this exercise, corporations, including financial institutions, examine how their business would fare under different pathways the future may take. One oft-used scenario, for example, is the International Energy Agency’s “Net-Zero by 2050: A Roadmap for the Energy Sector.” This Essay presents a history of the use of scenarios as a corporate planning tool, particularly in the oil industry, arguing that it is key for understanding our present moment and the role of …

Human Rights Risks In Clean Energy Supply Chains: Racial Capitalism, Critical Minerals, And Corporate Responsibility, Erika George

Faculty Scholarship

This paper argues that decarbonization will fail to deliver climate justice unless the transition to clean energy confronts the racialized political economy that has historically structured extractive activity and shaped international economic law. Grounding its analysis in racial capitalism, the paper contends that the growing demand for critical minerals risks reproducing patterns of exploitation, expropriation, and expulsion. Using lithium extraction in Chile as a case study, it shows how colonial legacies, dictator-era neoliberal reforms, and present-day regulatory architectures governing foreign investment and natural resource extraction have prioritized investors over human rights and the environment. Recent decisions of the International Court …

The Bugbear Of Indigenous Commercial Fishing Rights On The Eastern Frontiers Of Australia And The United States, Teresa Singh

LL.M. Essays & Theses

Restrictions on the commercial exercise of Indigenous fishing rights are plentiful across the U.S. and Australia. They have particular force and prevalence for Indigenous communities residing in the sites of the first colonies in both nations. This note exposes the common history underlying the diminished rights in these regions and argues the situation amounts to a critical environmental injustice. It follows that environmental justice advocates and scholars should embrace and advance the more encompassing iteration of Indigenous fishing rights urged by this note and support their restoration as a form of corrective justice for these communities.