Natural Resources Law Commons^™

Scientific Review Report, J D. Rossouw, M Musariri

Policy

This report provides the Scientific Review results and recommendations regarding the existing surface and groundwater monitoring sites for all nine Water Management Areas following the Regional WMA Network Design Workshops held in Nelspruit, Cape Town, Durban,King Williams Town, Bela-Bela and Bloemfontein from March to June 2016. During these workshops theoretical monitoring network considerations for each WMA were presented to various stakeholders, and the considerations were used to review the existing networks and obtain changes and improvements to the networks as recommendations. The main objectives of the workshops were to review the existing monitoring networks against the prioritized National Monitoring Objectives …

Cracks' In The Court's Analysis? Court Strikes Balancing Act Between Citizens' Constitutional Rights And Government's Exploitation Of Natural Gas Reserves In Pennsylvania Environmental Defense Foundation V. Commonwealth, Gabriella T. Soreth

Villanova Environmental Law Journal (1991 - )

No abstract provided.

Oneok, Inc. V. Learjet, Inc.: The Supreme Court Narrows The Preemptive Scope Of The Natural Gas Act And Extracts A Win For State Courts, Alexander D. Torres

Villanova Environmental Law Journal (1991 - )

No abstract provided.

Water, Water Everywhere, But Just How Much Is Clean?: Examining Water Quality Restoration Efforts Under The United States Clean Water Act And The United States-Canada Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, Jill T. Hauserman

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

"Fed" Up With Acidification: "Trusting" The Federal Government To Protect The Tulalip Tribes' Access To Shellfish Beds, Jacqueline M. Bertelsen

Washington Journal of Environmental Law & Policy

Part I of this paper discusses the threat ocean acidification poses to the Tulalip Tribes’ ability to practice and preserve its way of life. Part II examines the laws and legal structures, especially the Clean Water Act, that can simultaneously protect the Tulalip Tribes’ right to harvest shellfish at “usual and accustomed” shellfish beds and the health of Puget Sound’s waters as a whole. Finally, Part III proposes actions that can be taken at the state, tribal, and federal levels. First, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) should develop criteria and water quality standards relevant to ocean acidification that can be …

Space For Local Content Policies And Strategies, Lise Johnson

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

This paper explores both the role that local content measures can play in advancing sustainable development, and the impact that trade and investment treaties concluded over the past 20 years have had and will continue to have on the ability of governments to employ those tools. Certain local content measures had been restricted under the WTO due to wide agreement by negotiating parties that their costs outweigh their benefits. But the WTO also left a number of local content measures in governments’ policy toolboxes. As is discussed in this paper, however, that is changing, with the range of permissible actions …

A Policy Framework To Approach The Use Of Associated Petroleum Gas, Shay Banerjee, Perrine Toledano

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

CCSI developed "A Policy Framework to Approach the Use of Associated Petroleum Gas."

Associated Petroleum Gas (APG) is a form of natural gas that is found associated with petroleum fields. APG is often flared or vented for regulatory, economic or technical reasons. The flaring, however, is problematic from health and environmental perspectives. Moreover, flaring and venting APG wastes a valuable non-renewable resource that could be re-injected into the oil field or used for local and regional electricity generation.

This framework aims at providing guidance for regulators, policymakers, and industry leaders seeking to develop practical approaches to unlock the economic value …

Submission To The Sec On Addressing Land Tenure Risks Through Regulation S-K, Kaitlin Y. Cordes

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

In July 2016, CCSI sent a submission to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to provide input into how land tenure risks could be addressed through disclosure requirements for public companies. The SEC was seeking input into modernizing business and financial disclosure requirements in Regulation S-K, including whether Regulation S-K should be amended to require disclosure of public policy and sustainability information. CCSI argued that, due to the significant financial risk created by land tenure disputes in countries with weak or transitioning land governance systems, companies should be required to report on land tenure risks. Disclosure should be required for …

Mapping Mining To The Sustainable Development Goals: An Atlas, Columbia Center On Sustainable Investment, Sustainable Development Solutions Network, United Nations Development Programme, World Economic Forum

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

CCSI has been working with the World Economic Forum, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN) to create a shared understanding of how the mining industry can most effectively contribute to the SDGs. The report will help mining companies navigate where their activities – from exploration, through operations and mine closure – can help the world achieve the SDGs. Governments, civil society and other stakeholders can also identify opportunities for shared action and partnership with the industry.

A draft report of Mapping Mining to the Sustainable Development Goals: A Preliminary Atlas was released for …

Employment From Mining And Agricultural Investments: How Much Myth, How Much Reality?, Kaitlin Y. Cordes, Olle Östensson, Perrine Toledano

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Employment creation is often seen as a key benefit of investment in natural resources. However, this benefit sometimes falls short: job estimates may be inflated, governmental policies may fail to maximize employment generation, and, in some cases, investments may lead to net livelihood losses. A more thorough examination of employment tied to mining and agricultural investments is thus useful for assessing whether and how employment from natural resource investments contributes to sustainable economic development – a particularly timely topic as countries consider how they will achieve the Sustainable Development Goals adopted in 2015.

This report aims to clarify the processes …

Front Matter, Natural Resources Journal

Natural Resources Journal

No abstract provided.

State Innovation On Climate Change: Reducing Emissions From Key Sectors While Preparing For A New Normal, Gabriel Pacyniak

Faculty Scholarship

Climate change is a global phenomenon that is causing sea levels to rise, floods and droughts to become more severe, and countless other impacts. States are implementing many innovative initiatives that are helpful models for other state and federal action—catalyzing changes well beyond their borders. State and local governments possess important legal authorities in areas such as utilities regulation, infrastructure investment, and land use—governing important policies, programs and investments that have long-term consequences in the fight against climate change. More recently, states have begun to undertake efforts to prepare for the consequences of climate change—developing “adaptation plans” aimed at increasing …

Environmental Protection By Coastal States: The Paradigm From Marine Transport Of Petroleum, Joseph C. Sweeny

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

A Legacy That No One Can Afford To Inherit: The Gold King Disaster And The Threat Of Abandoned Hardrock Legacy Mines, Kelly Roberts

Journal of the National Association of Administrative Law Judiciary

This article begins with a description of the alarming matter of abandoned mines, mainly due to the issue of acid mine drainage. Then, it provides a detailed account of the Gold King disaster, including the current state of affairs surrounding the question of EPA liability. Next, it provides a simplified overview of some of the federal statutory hurdles that make it difficult to tackle remediation of abandoned hardrock mines. In wake of Gold King, another round of legislation has been proposed that might help, and these proposed bills center on familiar themes of reforming the General Mining Law of 1872 …

International Fisheries Regulation, John P. Rivers

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.

Understanding The Lloyd Moratorium And The Science That Supports It, Sarah J. Meyland

Pace Environmental Law Review

This article examines the background to the enactment of the Lloyd Moratorium, the role of science, and a discussion of why limits on certain groundwater use are appropriate. Section Two reviews the history of the Lloyd Moratorium and the challenges to it. The role of the State in implementing the moratorium is also considered. Section Three describes the current guidelines for Lloyd well permits. Section Four reviews the vulnerability of the Lloyd aquifer. Section Five discusses the necessity of setting a high bar for Lloyd aquifer access. Section Six concludes with an outline of how the Long Island aquifer system …

Extraterritoriality, Externalities, And Cross-Border Trade: Some Lessons From The United States, The European Union, And The World Trade Organization, Max S. Jansson

Pace Environmental Law Review

In this article, process and production method (PPM) rules are analyzed under three jurisdictions: the United States, the European Union (EU), and the World Trade Organization (WTO. The approach is justified by the fact that their rules on interstate trade reflect very similar basic objectives related to anti-protectionism. Moreover, the regimes, to a large extent, share the same structure of rules on prohibition balanced with rules on justification. All in all, the regimes reveal similar syntax. The comparability of the U.S. Dormant Commerce Clause Doctrine with both WTO law and EU free movement law has been highlighted already in previous …

Looking To The Third Sovereign: Tribal Environmental Ethics As An Alternative Paradigm, Elizabeth Ann Kronk Warner

Pace Environmental Law Review

This article considers what role, if any, can tribal environmental ethics play in the re-examination and consideration of American environmental ethics? The answer—quite a substantial role. Tribes must straddle two worlds—a traditional one and one dominated by Western culture and values. As a result of this dichotomy, tribes are necessarily experts at adaptation and innovation. To demonstrate the value of looking to tribal environmental ethics when considering alternative ethical paradigms for the United States, this article begins by discussing the link between environmental ethics and policy making. With this understanding in place, the article then examines the importance of environmental …

Learning To Live With The Trickster: Narrating Climate Change And The Value Of Resilience Thinking, Robin Kundis Craig

Pace Environmental Law Review

This article is based on the 2015 Pace Garrison Lecture that occurred on April 1, 2015. Fittingly for a talk given on April Fool’s Day, this article focuses on tricksters. It posits that framing climate change as one incarnation of a mythological trickster can give us a better cultural narrative framework for thinking about environmental, natural resources, and energy law and policy in a climate change era. The trickster narrative can helpfully displace the dominant engineering framework that informs most of American10 environmental, natural resources, and energy law and policy and open the way to a more productive policy context …

Proactive Natural Disaster Recovery And Resilience In The Northeast: Should Governments Exercise Buyout Programs And, If Necessary, Eminent Domain, To Prevent Disaster?, Stellina Napolitano

Pace Environmental Law Review

In light of the devastation left behind by the three most recent natural disasters in the northeast region—Hurricane Irene, Tropical Storm Lee, and Superstorm Sandy—local and state governments are now implementing “buyout programs” in order to protect the future of beachfront and flood-prone communities. These programs may not be a perfect solution, so, while positions differ on whether to pursue taking private properties by use of eminent domain, it may be a favorable option in order to attain the ultimate goal of safety and resilience against future disaster. Section II of this paper will analyze the background and impacts that …

Reevaluating Wilderness Classification And Management In The Face Of Climate Change: A Reconsideration Of Values And Ecology, Katherine Fiedler

Pace Environmental Law Review

In recognizing that the very nature of wilderness is a human construct, the values sought to be preserved can and should be reevaluated, considering the importance of wilderness in light of climate change and global ecosystem resilience, as well as how wilderness is designated and managed. Furthermore, the values that wilderness provides us will dramatically increase as climate change proceeds. Section II of this article describes the basics of wilderness protection, including the evolution of our relationship with wilderness, the history of the Wilderness Act, and what, how, and why wilderness is protected under the Act. Section III explores how …

City Sustainability Reporting: An Emerging & Desirable Legal Necessity, Adam J. Sulkowski

Pace Environmental Law Review

This article will begin with a brief history of sustainability reporting, including recent developments related to its adoption by cities. The author will then review two major trends that, considered together, indicate sustainability reporting should be viewed as an emerging legal necessity for municipalities in the United States. First, the exemption shielding cities from the disclosure requirements of securities laws has eroded. Second, sustainability disclosures now fit the definition of what must—as a matter of materiality, if not specific mandates—be reported to investors. This means that the cities that have collectively issued over $3.67 trillion in securities2 should all be …

Troubled Water: An Examination Of The Npdes Permit Shield, Stephanie Rich

Pace Environmental Law Review

In this comment I argue for a narrow interpretation of the Clean Water Act (CWA) permit shield by analyzing the recent federal cases addressing the shield’s scope. A narrow interpretation calls for a greater level of compliance and disclosure on behalf of the permit holder in order to invoke the shield’s protection. This argument also includes a higher standard of “reasonable contemplation” of pollutants on the part of the regulator. The first section of this comment gives a brief background of the CWA, the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES), and the permit shield provision. The next section presents the …

Finding Opportunities To Combat The Climate Change Migration Crisis: The Potential Of The “Adaptation Approach”, Mariya Gromilova

Pace Environmental Law Review

The aim of this article is to demonstrate the benefits of applying adaptation approach in conceptualising the issue of climate-induced population movement and its potential to respond to the main priorities to be addressed in the context of population movement induced by climate change. This article proceeds with Section 2, which provides an overview of the main difficulties to conceptualization of the issue of climate induced population movement from empirical and legal perspectives. Section 3, drawing upon the state of play presented above, identifies the main priorities that have to be addressed. Section 4 focuses on the opportunities the Cancun …

The Water-Energy-Climate Nexus Under International Law: A Central Asian Perspective, Anatole Boute

Michigan Journal of Environmental & Administrative Law

Water, energy, and climate change are intrinsically related to each other but are nonetheless subject to different international legal regimes. The fragmented nature of water, energy, and climate governance represents a challenge for the sustainable management of resources in the energy and water landscape of the 21st century. Regulatory choices in one field can potentially undermine the policy objectives pursued in the other fields. Promoting conventional and unconventional energy production for energy security purposes increases pressure on the availability of fresh water resources and contributes to climate change. Climate change exacerbates the scarcity of water resources, which leads to increasing …

Drought And California's Role In The Colorado River Compact, Ciara Dineen

Journal of Legislation

No abstract provided.

Protection Of The Marine Environment Under International Law And Kuwaiti Criminal Law, Yousef H. Almutairi

Dissertations & Theses

The marine environment has unique characteristics that distinguish it from other elements of nature. Since seas and oceans cover more than two-thirds of the earth, they play a vital role in achieving biological and climatic balance on the planet. The marine environment also plays an important role in human life, since it has plenty of nutritious and industrial resources that directly affect human welfare. It also contains huge amounts of oil and natural gas, which has played a role in the economic prosperity of the world. Moreover, seas are considered a source of freshwater through resorting to desalination of seawater …

Nimby To Nope—Or Yess?, K.K. Duvivier, Thomas Witt

Sturm College of Law: Faculty Scholarship

On December 12, 2015, 195 governments around the world agreed to the COP21 commitments to combat climate change. Pivotal to the success of these goals is a shift from fossil-fuel energy generation to renewable resources. Wind power is one of the largest renewable energy generation sources in the United States and has the greatest potential for future development. While wind energy generation has enjoyed some of the most impressive gains in development of new capacity, reaching future goals will face more challenges. In addition to resource potential, wind development is also confined to locations that meet the sweet spot of …

Mauna Kea Anaina Hou V. Board Of Land And Natural Resources, Wesley J. Furlong

Public Land & Resources Law Review

Native Hawaiians and the scientific community have been pitted against each other in a decades-long culture war over the construction of observatories and telescopes on sacred landscapes. In Mauna Kea Anaina Hou, the Hawai’i Supreme Court handed a victory to Native Hawaiian culture and rights by halting the construction of a new telescope on Mauna Kea. The decision must be read cautiously, however, as it is firmly rooted in the strict application of procedural due process.

The United States Nuclear Power Export Program: An Assessment Of It's National And International Impacts On The Enviornment, Gwyn P. Newsom

Georgia Journal of International & Comparative Law

No abstract provided.