Natural Resources Law Commons^™

State Policy And Regulatory Approaches To Sustainable Aviation Fuel Across The United States, Somtochukwu Attamah, Mary Johnson, Lara Fowler, Michael D. Helbing

Faculty Scholarship

Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) represents a critical lever for achieving near-term decarbonization of the aviation industry. SAF can be manufactured for “drop-in” use in existing aircraft and fueling systems, allowing manufacturers to achieve lifecycle greenhouse gas (GHG) savings relative to standard jet fuel. However, U.S. policy is still disjointed: federal incentives are accompanied by diffuse state efforts, which means uneven market-based feedback and investment risk. After outlining the federal policy context, this Article conducts a comparative analysis of SAF-related policy frameworks across the fifty states. This includes a variety of government solutions offered in the form of enacted and proposed …

Appeal No.1068: Roger L. Pierson, Jr. V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management And Eog Resources, Inc., Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appleal of Chief's Orders 2026-41 and 2026-86

Appeal No.1073: Granite Ridge Holdings, Llc, Et Al., V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Order 2026-124

Appeal No.1069: Roger L. Pierson, Jr. V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management And Eog Resources, Inc., Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appleal of Chief's Orders 2026-41 and 2026-86

Owning Geothermal Energy, Gabriel Eckstein

Faculty Scholarship

Geothermal energy holds vast potential for decarbonizing the U.S. energy system, yet the sector remains significantly underdeveloped, supplying only 0.4% of the nation's electricity. A principal barrier to growth is the fragmented and ambiguous legal landscape currently governing ownership of geothermal resources: thirty-three states lack any clear statutory or common-law framework identifying who owns subsurface thermal energy. This Article examines the physical characteristics of geothermal energy, recent developments in the U.S. geothermal sector, and the principal doctrinal approaches that might govern ownership of subsurface heat, including the ad coelum doctrine, common-pool and open-access frameworks, the rule of capture, and public …

Does Climate Disclosure Work To Reduce Greenhouse Gas Emissions? Emerging Evidence Suggests Cautious Optimism., Cynthia A. Williams

Articles by Maurer Faculty

The purpose of this Article is to bring some of the emerging empirical literature evaluating the effects of required greenhouse gas (GHG) disclosure to bear on discussions of disclosure as a mechanism to address climate change. Since disclosure has become such a significant part of global efforts to address climate change, whether it has the effects in fact that are attributed to it in theory is properly subject to interrogation.   In this Article, several interrelated questions will be discussed. First, what does the empirical evidence show about the effects of required (GHG) disclosures on emissions? What mechanisms are engaged in …

Climate Lies And Unjust Profits, Vanessa Casado-Pérez, Yotam Kaplan, Yael Lifshitz, Niv Meyerson

Faculty Scholarship

The climate crisis has reached a perilous tipping point. Our entrenched reliance on fossil fuels remains unchecked, as fossil fuel corporations wield their power to block meaningful reform and entrench their profits. The political horizon offers little relief—an incoming administration is poised to dismantle vital environmental protections, stripping away the few safeguards that stand between us and climate catastrophe.

In this grim landscape, communities across the nation are turning to the courts with renewed urgency, seeking justice and reform through climate litigation. Yet past efforts have fallen short, stymied by two formidable barriers. First, by centering on greenhouse gas emissions …

Groundwater Laws And Regulations: Survey Of Twenty-One U.S. States, Rebekah Acosta-Hueston, Abigail Adkins, Khadija Alibhai, Olivia Alland, Matthew C. Allen, Dan Archibald, Jeffrey Berk, John Broussard, Justin Cias, Bradford Eckhart, Blakely Fahning, Jackson Field, Michael Flores, Ellen Earl Gillis, Emma Golightly, Merrick Hayashi, David Hernandez, Kate Keithley, Matthew Maslanka, Erin Milliken, Lucas Mylet, Abigail Nichols, James O’Donnell, James Osteen, Connor Pabich, Cheryl Patterson, Rhyan Phillips, Sarah Rathmell, Margaret Reed, Laura Smith, Kelsi Sorrells, Brooke Thoendel, Ani Tookoian, Sandhya Wagle, Margaret Ward, Mackenzie Watson, Carolyn Wheeler, Ashley Wilde

EENRS Program Reports & Publications

This report constitutes the third and final volume in an ongoing project designed to explore and articulate the groundwater quantity laws and regulations of all fifty U.S. states that could then be used for comparative research. This particular report presents surveys for twenty-one states from across the country. The first volume featured thirteen state surveys while the second volume contained sixteen additional state surveys. Both can be found on the project website at: https://www.law.tamu.edu/US-Groundwater-Laws.

Professor Gabriel Eckstein at Texas A&M University School of Law and Professor Amy Hardberger at Texas Tech University School of Law developed an analytical rubric …

Appeal No. 1046: David & Kathryn Belknap, Et Al. V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management And Eog Resources, Inc., Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Order 2025-123

Appeal No. 1055: City Of Marietta. V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management And Deeprock Disposal Solutions, Llc., Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Steph #1 Well Permit

Appeal No. 1056: Donna M. Murry V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Orders 2025-276 and 2025-320

Appeal No. 1057: Donna M. Murry V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Orders 2025-276 and 2025-320

Appeal No. 1029: Appalachia Minerals, Llc. V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Order 2024-20

Appeal No. 1036: G & M Smith Family, Llc. V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Order 2024-287

Appeal No. 1058: Big M Petroleum Corporation V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Orders 2025-335, 2025-336, 2025-337, and 2025-338

Appeal No. 1059: Big M Petroleum Corporation V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Orders 2025-335, 2025-336, 2025-337, and 2025-338

Appeal No. 1060: Big M Petroleum Corporation V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Orders 2025-335, 2025-336, 2025-337, and 2025-338

Appeal No. 1031: Mason Drilling, Inc.. V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Order No. 2024-73

Appeal No. 1061: Big M Petroleum Corporation V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Orders 2025-335, 2025-336, 2025-337, and 2025-338

Law School News: Rwu Law Opens Coastal Resilience Clinic To Visiting Students For Summer 2026 2-25-2026, Helga Melgar

Life of the Law School (1993- )

No abstract provided.

Appeal No. 1067: Arrowhead Road Services, Llc. V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Order 2025-512

Appeal No. 1040: Leonard Wisneski V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Order 2024-435

Resilient Dispute Resolution Systems For International Energy Conflicts, Guillermo J. Garcia Sanchez

Faculty Scholarship

Energy-related conflicts are on the rise, spanning diverse issues such as the impacts of rare mineral mining on local communities, the impacts of sanctions on energy investments due to the Russia-Ukraine war, and the impacts of expanded subsidies on the electric vehicle and solar panel industries. Increasingly, companies, communities, and governments are clashing over the challenges of pursuing disparate and sometimes competing energy policies. This Article argues that dispute resolution mechanisms in the energy investment sector must be fundamentally rethought. Traditional semi-adjudicatory models, which focus on winners and losers, fail to accommodate the complex and multifaceted nature of contemporary energy …

When Words Flow Like Water: How The Enbridge Line 3 Pipeline Environmental Impact Statement Failed To Prevent Hydrogeologic Harm In Minnesota, Carly Gutzmann

Journal of Earth and Life Science

For the aquifers of Minnesota, the environmental impact statement (EIS) was a promise of protection that never left the page. An environmental impact statement is meant to be an aid in the decision making process in order to ensure that projects consider potential environmental harms that may occur. However, they are often used instead as another regulatory box to check, rather than as active considerations when planning. As such, a project plan can be flawed from the start—if project developers only consider environmental impacts after they have already put considerable time, effort, and funding into their project as-is, they may …

Decomposing Shadow Prices Under Climate-Driven Growth Scenarios: Insights From An Elk Herd Case Study, Ranjit Bawa, Drew Bennett, Wai Yan Siu, Bailey Kirkland, David Finnoff, Jacob Hochard

ODU Articles

Natural capital accounting provides a framework for integrating ecological processes with economic valuation, but the mechanics of shadow price formation often remain opaque to resource managers and policymakers. Using the Clarks Fork elk herd in northwestern Wyoming as a case study, we decompose the shadow price of natural capital into its ecological, economic, and institutional components. Population dynamics are estimated using a linearized Ricker model and projected forward using a logistic projection, incorporating climate-driven reductions in intrinsic growth rates. These ecological scenarios are linked to a shadow pricing formulation that explicitly accounts for marginal benefits, harvest policy responses, discounting, and …

Powering The Machine, Draining The Planet: Whether U.S. Environmental Law Is Equipped To Regulate The Energy And Water Demands Of Ai Data Centers, Michael Marcu

Journal of Earth and Life Science

Artificial intelligence (AI) data centers have become one of the United States' fastest-growing and least-regulated sources of environmental stress. In 2024 alone, U.S. data centers consumed 183 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity more than the entire nation of Pakistan and consumed an estimated 17 billion gallons of water (IEA, 2025; Berkeley Lab, 2024). By 2030, electricity demand from these facilities is projected to reach 426 TWh, a 133% increase in six years (Pew Research Center, 2025). This paper examines whether the existing U.S. environmental regulatory framework put by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Clean Water Act (CWA), and the …

Comparison Of Groundwater Ownership Regimes In Ten Jurisdictions Across Five Continents, Gabriel Eckstein, Theo Buchler, Caleb Cook, Heping Dang, Robyn Stein, Stefano Burchi, Gabriela Cuadrado Quesada, Juan Pablo Galeano, Eric Garner, Amy Hardberger, Imad Antoine Ibrahim, Oudi Kgomongwe

Faculty Scholarship

The regulation of groundwater remains underdeveloped globally and often lags behind the domestic governance of surface water. As a result, groundwater is often subject to unfettered extraction, uses, and contamination. A clear understanding of ownership is central to the success of domestic regulations. However, the types of ownership regime in place in nations around the world are poorly documented in the academic literature. This study addresses that gap through a comparative analysis of domestic groundwater ownership regimes across ten jurisdictions in nine countries spanning five continents. It identifies three dominant models of groundwater ownership: private ownership, public ownership, and non-ownership …

Allocating Electricity, Alexandra Klass, Dave Owen

Articles

The U.S. electricity system is premised on the ideas that utilities have a duty to serve all customers in their service territories and that electricity supply should always meet demand. Until recently, there has been little reason to question these foundational premises. U.S. electricity demand has remained flat for over a decade, and during earlier periods of growth, new energy generation plants were relatively easy to build. Now, however, electricity experts predict massive load growth—most notably from data centers to power artificial intelligence and cryptocurrency—and building new power plants is no longer easy.

Major efforts are underway to increase electricity …

The Idea Of Air, Jonathan Skinner-Thompson

Publications

How we view air, especially clean air, has meaningful normative and practical implications. Today, it is commonly recognized as an exhaustible natural resource. But air was not always thought of as something to be conserved, developed, and used. This Article is the first to explore and interrogate that view.

The shift to seeing air as a resource started in the first part of the twentieth century. Previously, air was characterized by its limitless supply of oxygen: a pure public good. Over time, the quality of that good changed, and a precious resource emerged. That resource—especially its chemical and physical characteristics—inspired …

Appeal No.1049: Gaia Exploration, Llc. V. Division Of Oil & Gas Resources Management, Ohio Oil & Gas Commission

Ohio Oil & Gas Commission Decisions

Appeal of Chief's Order 2025-205