ELI News

Regulating Fly Ash: Safety Design or Hazardous Waste Issue?

The EPA is under pressure by environmentalists and members of Congress to classify fly ash residue from coal as a hazardous substance under Subtitle C of RCRA. But as former EPA Assistant Administrator Elliott P. Laws lays out in the January/February edition of The Environmental Forum, the unintended consequences of this action are numerous and far-reaching, particularly for the reuse market.

Analyzing the Impacts of Climate Change on Wetlands in a Post-Copenhagen World

Last month’s Copenhagen Accord at the international climate summit provided a small step forward in the continuing response to our changing climate. The January-February 2010 issue of the National Wetlands Newsletter provides a series of ideas about how to respond to climate challenges going forward, both on-the-ground efforts and implementing national policies.

Maryland Offshore Energy Framework

ELI’s Oceans and Land & Biodiversity staff analyze the tools available to Maryland’s Coastal Zone Management Program to address new energy activities in state and federal coastal waters. The report assesses Maryland’s existing laws and policies, interstate agreements, and federal laws, and identifies potential measures that can help Maryland create an Offshore Energy Framework. Among its recommendations are that Maryland form an interagency council to develop policy on offshore energy activities, and that it launch an offshore alternative energy task force under the 2009 federal Minerals Management Service rules to guide research and decisionmaking that may affect leasing of Outer Continental Shelf lands for wind energy.

Conserving the Chesapeake’s Treasured Landscapes

ELI has collaborated with the Friends of the Capt. John Smith Chesapeake Trail and the National Geographic Society to produce a report and map recommending the development of a bold and coordinated strategy for conserving the Chesapeake's beautiful landscapes and calling for more federal investment in land conservation. Conserving Treasured Landscapes in the Chesapeake: A Special Report bases its findings on ELI's careful analysis of more than 25 federal and state conservation programs. Click here to view the press release.

Energy Subsidies Favor Fossil Fuels Over Renewables

The largest U.S subsidies to fossil fuels are attributed to tax breaks that aid foreign oil production, according to research released by ELI. The study, which reviewed fossil fuel and energy subsidies for Fiscal Years 2002-2008, reveals that the lion’s share of energy subsidies supported energy sources that emit high levels of greenhouse gases. Fossil fuels benefited from approximately $72 billion over the seven-year period, while subsidies for renewable fuels totaled only $29 billion. A related graphic chart illustrates the findings, and a map prepared by the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars depicts Energy Flows in the U.S. for 2007. View the project page.

Annual Student Writing Competition Now Open for Entries

ELI is now accepting entries for its Fifth Annual “Endangered Environmental Laws” Student Writing Competition (2009-10). Co-sponsored by ELI; the American Bar Association Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources; and the National Association of Environmental Law Societies, law students are invited to submit papers exploring current issues of constitutional environmental law. The winning entry receives a $2000 cash prize and an offer of publication in the Environmental Law Reporter®. Please click here for more information.