January 23, 2008

Climate Change in the Northeast: Update on Federal Developments and Implementing RGGI

The Northeastern United States has shown great leadership in developing programs to address climate change in the United States. While the framework for the principal program, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), initially targets carbon dioxide emission reductions from power plants, the program may expand to include other sources. Implementation of RGGI is well underway, with the first phase of the regional cap-and-trade program set to begin on January 1, 2009. In addition, there are developments at the federal level that will impact many sectors of the economy in the Northeast, including regulatory developments at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and potential federal legislation. A key issue for the RGGI states will be the extent to which federal legislation will address the issue of federal preemption of state action.

In this seminar, an event in the ELI Understanding Climate Change Law Seminar Series, speakers from the regulated community, EPA and the environmental community presented updates on the federal and regional programs, as well as discussed the key issues in the implementation of RGGI such as the intersection between RGGI and developments at the federal level.

Moderator:
Kenneth Meade, Partner, WilmerHale

Panelists:
Reid Harvey, Chief, Program Integration Branch, Climate Change Division, EPA Office of Atmospheric Programs
Mark Kalpin, Partner, WilmerHale
Seth Kaplan, Vice President for Climate Advocacy, Conservation Law Foundation
Alexander "Sandy" Taft, National Grid

Please click herefor more information on the
Understanding Climate Change Law seminar series.