Environmental Law Commons^™

Environmental And Energy Law Perspectives: Spring 2012, Environmental And Energy Law Program

Environmental and Energy Law Perspectives

No abstract provided.

Environmental Judicial Interpretation And Agency Review: An Empirical Investigation Of Judicial Decision-Making In The Clean Water Act And The Clean Air Act, John A. Sautter, Levente Littvay

Buffalo Environmental Law Journal

Political ideology has long been associated with the manner in which judges make judicial decisions. Extensive empirical research has established the link between a judge s political ideology and how they rule on cases. However, little research has been conducted specifically in environmental law. Indeed, what research is available looks at environmental law in general and has not asked any questions concerning how political ideology might affect decision-making concerning specific environmental statutes. This article seeks to partially fill this void by looking specifically at how political ideology affects whether judges affirm or reverse agency action with respect to the Clean …

The Erosion Of Federal Common Law: Anticipatory Delegation In American Electric Power Company V. Connecticut, Paul Winters

Buffalo Environmental Law Journal

Eleven plaintiffs brought a common law action, seeking injunctive relief against the six largest American producers of greenhouse gases. Because the EPA had not yet promulgated regulations governing the production of greenhouse gases, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals held that federal law had not displaced plaintiffs ' common law claim. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that even though regulations had not been promulgated, EPA occupied the field nevertheless. The decision marks an extension of the regulatory displacement of federal common law to regulations that are merely anticipated Such extension, or "anticipatory delegation, " represents an unacceptably large incursion into …

Tradable Standards For Clean Air Act Carbon Policy, Nathan D. Richardson, Dallas Butraw, Arthur G. Fraas

Faculty Publications

EPA is in the process of regulating U.S. greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions using its powers under the Clean Air Act. The likely next phase of this regulatory program is performance standards under Section 111 of the act for coal plants and petroleum refineries, which the agency has committed to finalize by the end of 2012. Section 111 appears to allow use of flexible, market-based regulatory tools. In this paper, we discuss one such tool, tradable standards. Tradable standards appear to be a legally and politically viable choice for the agency, and evidence suggests they are substantially more cost-effective than traditional …

Earth, Air, Water And Fire: The Classical Elements Confront Land And Energy, Steven Ferrey

Suffolk University Law School Faculty Works

For thousands of years, the classical theory, which was considered the best science of the time and was observed my most cultures and religions of the world, held that there were four basic elements from which everything in life was constructed: Earth, Water, Air and Fire. This classical theory anchored Hinduism, Buddhism, Chinese and Japanese religions, as well as Greek philosophy. From these classical elements, all matter was derived. From the time of Aristotle to relatively recent times, this theory persisted. These classical elements were thought to be at the core of alchemy in Medieval times.

This article transposes this …

Negotiating The Interface Of Environmental And Economic Governance: Nova Scotia's Environmental Goals And Sustainable Prosperity Act, William Lahey, Meinhard Doelle

Dalhousie Law Journal

The year 2012 marks the fifth anniversary of the Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act (EGSPA). The Act is an experiment in improving government performance in promoting sustainable prosperity through the process of setting legislative goals and enhancing accountability This article provides an overview of the Act and an assessment of its performance over these first five years. As such, it supplies the context for the other contributions to the collection of essays on EGSPA in this issue of the Journal. The authors conclude that the Act has had a positive impact on government action on sustainable prosperity and that …

Climate Change And The Roles Of Land Use And Energy Law: An Introduction, David Markell

Scholarly Publications

No abstract provided.

The Environmental And Social Injustice Of Farmworker Pesticide Exposure, Joan D. Flocks

UF Law Faculty Publications

Farmworkers in the United States are recognized as an environmental justice community. The farmworker population is low-income and primarily Hispanic, and is at a disproportionate risk from exposure to an environmental contaminant pesticides. Farmworkers face distributional, procedural, corrective, and social challenges with this exposure, as is common with other environmental justice communities. Social challenges include socioeconomic and political inequities that are grounded in the historical domination of the agricultural industry over its labor force. The production and use of pesticides is a function of the economic priorities of industry. Employers profit from pesticide use and are able to maximize their …

An Inconvenient Lie: Big Tobacco Was Put On Trial For Denying The Effects Of Smoking; Is Climate Change Denial Off-Limits?, Elizabeth Dubats

Northwestern Journal of Law & Social Policy

Plaintiffs have made several notable attempts to bring nuisance, trespass, and negligence suits against major sources of greenhouse gas emissions for climate change related injuries. While climate change is a widely recognized environmental issue, courts have refused to recognize it as a basis for a valid cause of action in tort, finding either petitioners lack standing to bring the claim, or that the claim raises political questions that should not be addressed by the judiciary. Some more recent climate change tort claims have also included allegations of fraud on the part of the hydrocarbon industry for actively perpetuating misinformation about …

Rulemaking As Politics, Thirty Years On, Michael Herz

Articles

No abstract provided.

From Idea To Practice: Sustainable Development Efforts In Manitoba, A John Sinclair, Lisa Quinn

Dalhousie Law Journal

With a renewed global interest in achieving a more sustainable society, the authors reflect on the history of institutionalizing sustainable development in their province, Manitoba, and consider its future. This paper outlines that province's approaches to developing and advancing sustainable development and discusses the success of these approaches in shaping, guiding, and furthering sustainable development in the province. This is achieved through examination of legislation and review of sustainable development documents as well as interviews with various participants in the process including members of the Manitoba Round Table for Environment and Economy and members of the more recent Manitoba Round …

In Search Of "Compass And Gyroscope": Where Were Adaptive Management And Principled Negotiation In Nova Scotia's Forest-Strategy Process?, Peter N. Duinker

Dalhousie Law Journal

In his landmark 1993 book entitled Compass and Gyroscope: Integrating Science and Politics for the Environment, Kai Lee outlined the need for stronger processes in support of sustainable development. The science of adaptive management and the politics of principled negotiation were offered as the most promising approaches. The author uses these concepts to evaluate the process used to develop Nova Scotia's natural resources strategies of August 2011, specifically the forest strategy following the Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act. The findings show that, by comparison with similar policy-development processes used elsewhere in Canada, the Nova Scotia process lacked both foresight …

Are Climate Change Policies Fair To Vulnerable Communities? The Impact Of British Columbia's Carbon Tax And Australia's Carbon Pricing Policy On Indigenous Communities, Karen Bubna-Litic, Nathalie J. Chalifour

Dalhousie Law Journal

This paper compares carbon pricing policies in British Columbia and Australia in order to identify differences between carbon taxes and emissions trading schemes (ETS) from a fairness perspective. We examine how taxes and trading systems impact indigenous communities in both jurisdictions. While the regressivity of carbon pricing is a critical part of any fairness assessment, we argue that socioeconomic and cultural factors must also be taken into consideration. We discuss the importance of accompanying carbon pricing with policies that mitigate not only distributional impacts, but also additional impacts. These may be funded by the revenue generated by the policy or …

Climate Change: Human Rights In The Times Of Climate Displacement, Shakeel Kazmi

Dissertations & Theses

The increasing numbers of climate migrants caution that the dilemma of climate refugees is a well-substantiated concern of today not tomorrow. In 2011 large-scale flooding and landslides affected more than one million people in the Philippines. More than twenty million people were displaced after massive floods in Pakistan in 2010. A significant number of future projections show that climate change will lead tens, and perhaps hundreds, of millions of people to leave their homes and in some cases their countries. The crisis of human displacement, which entails immediate actions, raised the questions of legal and moral obligations to protect the …

Ripening On The Vine: North Carolina's Renewable Energy And Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard Should Be Left Unchanged Ahead Of 2012 Compliance Deadline, Robert W. Kaylor, Patrick T. Buffkin

North Carolina Central Law Review

No abstract provided.

Protecting Pennsylvania’S Three Rivers’ Water Resources From Shale Gas Development Impacts, Jennifer Hayes

Duke Environmental Law & Policy Forum

No abstract provided.

"And The People Of The Province": Egspa's Social Deficit, Susan Tirone, Lkaren Gallant, Katie Sykes

Dalhousie Law Journal

The success of the Nova Scotia Environmental Goals and Sustainable Prosperity Act (EGSPA) depends on citizen action, changes in attitudes and in the way citizens conduct their lives. In this article the authors discuss the challenges associated with encouraging citizen engagement with EGSPA, and in promoting public awareness and attitudes that support sustainability in Nova Scotia.

Revisiting The Impact Of Judicial Review On Agency Rulemakings: An Empirical Investigation, Wendy Wagner

William & Mary Law Review

It is generally believed that the judicial review of agency rulemakings helps protect the public interest against industry capture. Yet very little empirical research has been done to assess the accuracy of this conventional wisdom. This Study examines the entire set of air toxic emission regulations promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), with particular attention to those rules appealed to judgment in the court of appeals, and discovers significant disconnects between popular understanding of judicial review and rulemaking reality. Of these air toxic rules (N=90), the courts were summoned to review only a small fraction (8%), despite evidence that …

Environmental And Social Implications Of Hydraulic Fracturing And Gas Drilling In The United States: An Integrative Workshop For The Evaluation Of The State Of Science And Policy, Workshop Report

Duke Environmental Law & Policy Forum

No abstract provided.

Considering Shale Gas Extraction In North Carolina: Lessons From Other States, Sarah K. Adair, Brooks Rainey Pearson, Jonas Monast, Avner Vengosh, Robert B. Jackson

Duke Environmental Law & Policy Forum

No abstract provided.