Environmental Law Commons^™

Drilling Down: New York, Hydraulic Fracturing, And The Dormant Commerce Clause, Meredith A. Wegener

Brigham Young University Journal of Public Law

The debate surrounding hydraulic fracturing and natural gas development from shale rock needs no embellishment. This highly sought resource and highly fought drilling technique trigger significant concerns: human health, energy independence, national security, water safety, air quality, agricultural well-being, outdoor aesthetic impairment, government involvement at all levels and by all branches, and economic development and sustainability. Whether actively participating in this conversation or not, everyone has a stake in the resolution of whether to allow this technique to be utilized and these resources to be produced.

Epa Enforcement: A Heightened Emphasis On Mitigation Relief, David Markell

Scholarly Publications

No abstract provided.

Climate Change And Water Transfers, Jesse Reiblich, Christine A. Klein

UF Law Faculty Publications

Climate change adaptation is all about water. Although some governments have begun to plan for severe water disruptions, many have not. The consequences of inaction, however, may be dire. As a report of the U.N. Environment Programme warns, “countries that adopt a ‘wait and see’ approach potentially risk the lives of their people, their ecosystems and their economies.” In the United States, according to one study, nearly 60% of the states are unprepared to deal with the impending crisis. Responding to this void, we offer what we believe is the first comprehensive, fifty-state survey of water allocation law and its …

Leveraging Mining Investments In Water Infrastructure For Broad Economic Development: Models, Opportunities And Challenges, Perrine Toledano, Clara Roorda

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

The initial phase of the Leveraging Mining-Related Infrastructure Investments for Development project consisted of a worldwide survey of regulatory, commercial and operating case studies of shared use of mining-related infrastructure. This Policy Paper delivers the findings for water infrastructure.

Getting To The (Non) Point: Private Governance As A Solution To Nonpoint Source Pollution, Kyle W. Robisch

Vanderbilt Law Review

Chances are that today you have already unwittingly advanced the slow but steady demise of America's freshwater supply. The sausage and egg biscuit you ate for breakfast, the half-empty bottle of Drano you dumped into your backyard, and the quick trip to the grocery store-these seemingly innocent actions each significantly degrade American watersheds.' In response to this systemic and persistent assault on water quality, Congress enacted the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1972. More commonly known as the Clean Water Act ("CWA"), this legislation attempted to take an aggressive and comprehensive approach to improving water quality. To achieve its …

Developing Adaptive And Integrated Strategies For Managing The Electricity-Water Nexus, Benjamin K. Sovacool, Alex Gilbert

University of Richmond Law Review

No abstract provided.

Oil And Gas And Floods, Justin Pidot

University of Richmond Law Review

This symposium article has three goals. First, it seeks to draw attention to the pressing risks that natural disasters pose to energy infrastructure. It focuses on one type of natural disaster flooding and one variety of energy infrastructure-oil and natural gas. Natural disasters do not, however, discriminate and also pose broad risks to energy systems of all stripes. Second, the article seeks to provide examples of existing federal and state legal regimes that address to some extent the dangers floods pose to the oil and gas industry. As we shall see, the regulatory regimes I address are sparse and hardly …

China’S Role In The Changing Governance Of Arctic Shipping, Nengye Liu

Research Collection Yong Pung How School Of Law

This paper explores the role that China could play in the development of an effective international legal system for the governance of Arctic shipping. The first part describes the current international legal regime applicable to shipping activities in the Arctic. The second assesses China's relations with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and the Arctic Council. China's potential contribution to the governance of Arctic shipping is addressed in the final part.

Slides: “Human Sustainability” In Natural Resources Industries: The New Frontier In Compliance, Social Responsibility, Disclosure, And Transparency, T. Markus Funk

Natural Resource Industries and the Sustainability Challenge (Martz Winter Symposium, February 27-28)

Presenter: T. Markus Funk, Partner, Perkins Coie

21 slides

Slides: Thoughts On Regulatory Mechanisms For Natural Resource Development: Alternatives To Command And Control, Including A Look At Open Source Approaches, Stanley Dempsey

Natural Resource Industries and the Sustainability Challenge (Martz Winter Symposium, February 27-28)

Presenter: Stanley Dempsey, Chairman, Royal Gold

17 slides

Is The Clean Water Act's Diligent Prosecution Bar Jurisdictional? A Journey Into Discovering Congressional Intent, Szonja Ludvig

BYU Law Review

No abstract provided.

Agenda: Natural Resource Industries And The Sustainability Challenge, University Of Colorado Boulder. Getches-Wilkinson Center For Natural Resources, Energy, And The Environment, University Of Colorado Boulder. The Colorado Law Energy Innovation Initiative

Natural Resource Industries and the Sustainability Challenge (Martz Winter Symposium, February 27-28)

"An International Conference hosted by The Getches-Wilkinson Center for Natural Resources, Energy, and the Environment and The Colorado Law Energy Innovation Initiative."

For more than two decades, sustainability has gained currency as a broad organizing principle for efforts to develop and use energy, natural resources, and the environment in ways that allow society to meet its needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs. More recently, sustainability has been embraced by businesses across multiple sectors as part of a broader movement of corporate social responsibility. Hardly a day goes by without news of another corporate initiative …

Slides: Comments Of Jeff Bingaman, Jeff Bingaman

Natural Resource Industries and the Sustainability Challenge (Martz Winter Symposium, February 27-28)

Presenter: Jeff Bingaman, former Chair of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and U.S. Senator from New Mexico

6 slides

Solar Skyspace B, K.K. Duvivier

Sturm College of Law: Faculty Scholarship

The cleanest source of electricity is that generated from photovoltaic solar panels (PV). Unlike fossil fuels, PV does not require extraction and does not burn, so it emits no carbon. Unlike hydropower, it does not require the damming of natural rivers and the destruction of upstream areas through flooding. Unlike industrial-scale concentrating solar thermo-electric power, it does not consume water to generate electricity. Finally, when placed on existing rooftops in developed areas, distributed solar PV does not require long-term dedication of public lands to an industrial use, does not disrupt native habitat (a potential problem with all of other energy …

The Climate Change Challenge: An Update From Washington, Christina Deconcini

ELPR Annual Symposium

No abstract provided.

Making Regional And Local Tmdls Work: The Chesapeake Bay Tmdl And Lessons From The Lynnhaven River, Shana Campbell Jones

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

This Article will first provide an overview of how restoration developed in the Bay in order to provide a regional context for the Lynnhaven River “total maximum daily load[s]” or TMDL. The Article will then explain the 2011 Chesapeake Bay TMDL and how it potentially foreshadows “next generation” cooperative federalism and watershed restoration because it is generating increased engagement from local government, private citizens, and non-profit restoration efforts. This Article will then tighten its focus to the Lynnhaven River, a local tributary within the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and will examine the local government’s success in implementing measures to meet a …

Rio + 20: What Difference Has Two Decades Made To State Practice In The Regulation Of Invasive Alien Species?, Sophie Riley

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

This Article collects and analyzes information available from the Convention on Biological Diversity National Reports to consider what members themselves have identified as their regulatory strengths and weaknesses. Against this backdrop, the Article evaluates the effectiveness of international environmental law in guiding domestic regimes, highlighting that where international law is imprecise or inconsistent, it can hinder the development of successful State practice.

Investment Treaties And Industrial Policy: Select Case Studies On State Liability For Efforts To Encourage, Shape And Regulate Economic Activities In Extractive Industries And Infrastructure, Lise Johnson

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

This paper, prepared in connection with a February 2014 conference organized by the UN Economic Commission for Africa, discusses some of the implications that investment treaties have for investments in infrastructure and the extractive industries. It focuses on liability for government conduct (1) in connection with tenders and negotiations; (2) when responding to questions regarding the legality of the investment; (3) in using performance requirements to leverage benefits and capture spillovers from the investment; (4) changing the legal framework governing an investment in response to evolving needs, circumstances, and interests; (5) administering the investment; and (6) requesting, and responding to …

How To Save The Chesapeake Bay Tmdl: The Critical Role Of Nutrient Offsets, Robert H. Nelson

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

No abstract provided.

Disagreement And Design: Searching For Consensus In The Climate Policy And Intergenerational Discounting Debate, Michael A. Kane

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

Current approaches to discounting in climate policy present a seemingly intractable problem. While it is widely recognized that choice of discount rate in climate models can easily dwarf the effect of other parameter inputs, there is at present a very wide disagreement, both in law and in economics, about the appropriate discount rate to use. This Paper provides a framework for achieving a workable consensus range for acceptable discount rates in climate models. It does so by emphasizing three factors previously ignored in the literature. First, it demonstrates that the choice of discount rate should be tailored to the type …