Environmental Law Commons^™

A New Remedy For Junk Science: Article 11.073 And Texas's Response To The Changing Landscape In The Forensic Sciences., Trevor Rosson

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract Forthcoming.

No Appropriation Without Compensation: How Per Se Takings Of Personal Property Check The Power To Regulate Commerce., William Sumner Macdaniel

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract Forthcoming.

Pipe(Line) Dreams Post-Denbury Green., Nicholas Laurent, Christopher Oddo

St. Mary's Law Journal

In Denbury Green Pipeline-Texas, LLC v. Texas Rice Land Partners, the Beaumont Court of Appeals articulated the test that should be applied when considering whether the condemnation of private property, which would result favorably for pipeline companies, should be allowed. In Denbury, the Beaumont Court of Appeals balanced the protection of private property rights against the need for true common carrier pipeline companies to condemn private property. The court held that in order to condemn private property, a substantial public interest must exist to justify such condemnation. The Texas Supreme Court, however, reversed the decision of the Beaumont Court of …

Tx Rice V. Denbury., Thomas Alan Zabel

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract Forthcoming.

Little Streams And Legal Transformations, Dave Owen

Utah Law Review

In 1972, Congress passed a statute whose text offered sweeping protection for waterways across the nation. In theory, those protections extended to little streams. Actual practices were different, not just in the 1970s but also well into the 1990s. But over the past twenty years, small streams have become a central focus of regulatory protection, with the extent and type of those protections continuing to evolve to this day, and with additional changes still possible. The future of that evolution is uncertain, and it may hang in the balance; Congress, the incoming administration, or the courts could nip much of …

The Ends And Means Of Pollution Control: Toward A Positive Theory Of Environmental Law, David M. Driesen

Utah Law Review

An understanding of environmental law’s means and ends makes it possible to understand the field as a whole, both in terms of the overall structure of statutes and relationships between means and ends. This analysis of means and ends yields a host of valuable insights and significant research questions. It also provides an important foundation for evaluating proposed regulatory reforms. A reasonably complete theory, at a minimum, should also explain key features of the enforcement regime and the allocation of authority among governments. The theory of means and ends articulated here constitutes a very substantial step forward in constructing a …

Behavioral Public Choice And The Carbon Tax, Gary M. Lucas Jr.

Utah Law Review

In response to the historic Paris Agreement on climate change and to the Environmental Protection Agency’s recently finalized Clean Power Plan, economists and other climate policy experts have renewed the call for the United States to adopt a carbon tax. Opposition among the public presents a major obstacle. While a majority of the public supports government action on climate change, most people favor the use of “green” subsidies and command-and-control regulations — a fact that frustrates economists of all political stripes who contend that a carbon tax would be much cheaper and more effective. This Article argues that a cognitive …

An Empirical Study Of The Impact Of The Renewable Fuel Standard (Rfs) On The Production Of Fuel Ethanol In The U.S., Jay P. Kesan, Hsiao-Shan Yang, Isabel F. Peres

Utah Law Review

The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program, which mandates the commercialization of biofuels through 2022, is the United States’ most significant piece of legislation regarding renewable energy. It was first passed in 2005 and revised and expanded in 2007 in order to create a viable market for biofuels based on the policy goals of enhancing domestic U.S. energy security, reducing transportation-related greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, and stimulating rural economic development.

The RFS requires minimum levels of consumption for different kinds of biofuels and requires increasing blending amounts of biofuels into gasoline and diesel fuels by producers and importers each year. Mandates …

Eliminating Passive Disposal: Equalizing Liability Among Current And Prior Owners And Operators In The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, And Liability Act Of 1980, Joe Amadon

Utah Law Review

It seems clear, through the 1986 SARA, that Congress did not want innocent parties who conducted due diligence in inspecting the land to be liable under CERCLA. Thus, expanding CERCLA’s definition of disposal to attach liability to passive conduct is inconsistent with Congress’s intent. Therefore, in order to align enforcement of CERCLA with its dual purposes and Congress’s intent in enacting the Act, disposal should be interpreted to exclude passive migration of hazardous substances when the owner or operator knows nothing of the presence of the hazardous substance that is spreading.

“Sacrifice Zones” In The Green Energy Economy: Toward An Environmental Justice Framework, Dayna Scott, Adrian A. Smith

Articles & Book Chapters

The environmental justice movement validates the grassroots struggles of residents of places which Steve Lerner refers to as “sacrifice zones”: low-income and racialized communities shouldering more than their fair share of environmental harms related to pollution, contamination, toxic waste, and heavy industry. On this account, disparities in wealth and power, often inscribed and re-inscribed through social processes of racialization, are understood to produce disparities in environmental burdens. Here, we attempt to understand how these dynamics are shifting in the green energy economy under settler colonial capitalism. We consider the possibility that the political economy of green energy contains its own …

An Evaluation Of U.S. National Wildlife Refuge Planning For Off-Road Vehicle Use, Robert L. Fischman, Vicky J. Meretsky, Katie Freeman, Alexi Lamm, Leah Missik, Scott Salmon

Articles by Maurer Faculty

Off-road vehicles (hereafter, ORVs) rank high among public-land management challenges because they are popular, often impair environmental conditions, and may cause conflicts with other recreational users. Unit-level planning for federal lands increasingly translates broad, system-wide objectives, such as maintenance of ecological integrity, into place-based limitations on ORV use to minimize and mitigate adverse impacts on wildlife. We reviewed 176 planning documents covering 313 National Wildlife Refuges (hereafter, Refuges) to understand how planning supports or undermines ORV recreation management. These plans offer an important perspective on ORV management because the Refuges are a large, diverse system of conservation lands where recreation …

No-Analogue Future: Challenges For The World Of Nature In A World Without Precedent, Sean Kammer

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Our Oceans Need Sharks: A Comparative Analysis Of Shark And Turtle Conservation Law In Australia And The United States, Gabrielle Stiff Heim

Law Student Publications

The model used for turtle conservation and recovery would be an accurate model for conserving and recovering the endangered shark species, as well. As sharks are crucial to the marine environment, action needs to be taken in the form of policies that parallel those that protect turtles. Specifically, the models of protection for turtles in both Australia and the United States can serve as examples for shark conservation and recovery policies. As sharks are migratory species like turtles, international efforts and treaties are also crucial to providing boundaries and regulations for sharks in the global arena. The future of sharks …

Exempt Wells And Agriculture, Jesse Richardson, Iris Aloi

Law Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Picking Up The Pieces: Congress's Role In Combatting The Global Issue Of Marine Debris, Sheldon Whitehouse, Lisa Murkowski

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Introduction To The 10th Marine Law Symposium, Julia Wyman

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Bootlegging, Oysters, And Closed-To-Harvest Waters: Adding Teeth To The Coastal Zone Management Act To More Effectively And Efficiently Restore The Coastal Zone, Clare M. Harmon

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Plastics In The Ocean: The Environmental Plague Of Our Time, Joan M. Bondareff, Maggie Carey, Carleen Lyden-Kluss

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Big Apple's Tiny Problem: A Legal Analysis Of The Microplastic Problem In The N.Y./N.J. Harbor, Sean Dixon, Zachary Lees, Andrea Leshak

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Rising To The Level Of Climate Science: Rhode Island, The National Flood Insurance Program, And Sea Level Rise Projections, Nicole E. Rohr

Roger Williams University Law Review

No abstract provided.