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Vibrant Environment
Biodiversity | Climate Change and Sustainability | Environmental Justice | Governance and Rule of Law | Land Use and Natural Resources | Oceans and Coasts | Pollution Control
The Endangered Species Act: Are State Backstops Sufficient?
By ELR Staff
Monday, October 16, 2017
The federal Endangered Species Act (ESA) enjoys considerable popular support and provides enormous ecological and other benefits beyond the protection of particular species. Yet the Act is not without its skeptics—longstanding calls to overhaul the Act have only gained traction in the 115th U.S. Congress and new Donald Trump Administration.
Smart Tech, Dumb Design: Planned Obsolescence and Social Responsibility
By Azi Akpan, Science and Policy Analyst; Manager, National Wetlands Awards
Wednesday, October 11, 2017
September 22 marked the beginning of fall, and for some, that means it’s officially apple-picking season. Coincidentally, this isn’t the only type of apple officially in season. September 22 also marked the release date of Apple’s iPhone 8. And it’s not too long until you have your pick of a new Apple product with the release of the iPhone X on November 3.
Environmental Protection in the Trump Era
By John Pendergrass, Vice President, Programs & Publications
Wednesday, October 4, 2017
Here at ELI, we’ve seen a growing demand for unbiased answers and analysis on how deregulatory initiatives by the Administration and Congress will impact environmental protection, governance, and the rule of law. To that end, we recently collaborated with the American Bar Association’s Civil Rights and Social Justice Section to publish an ebook to aid understanding of the legal mechanisms that the White House, federal agencies, and Congress are using to change the regulatory approach to environmental, natural resources, and health and safety protections. The book attempts to answer these questions: What are the pathways and potential impacts of these ongoing regulatory changes? What are the opportunities for the public and other stakeholders to engage relative to these initiatives?
Look! A New Pollutant
By Dave Rejeski, Visiting Scholar
Monday, October 2, 2017
Since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, coal-fired systems have been emitting a pollutant we did not even know existed . . . until now. In 2014, a team of scientists studying arsenic in the Dan River coal ash spill site in North Carolina discovered a new nano-scale version of titanium oxides that had never been seen before.* What they discovered were titanium suboxides, or so-called Magnéli phases, which were first synthesized in the 1930s. These substances are extremely rare in nature, seen only in rocks having an extraterrestrial origin (meteorites, lunar rocks, and interplanetary dust particles), and at one known point on the earth’s surface—rock formations on the central coast of western Greenland.
More Bog for the Buck: Leveraging NEPA Efficiencies to Increase Restoration
By Amy Reed, Senior Attorney, Teresa Chan, Senior Attorney, and Xiao Recio-Blanco, Senior Attorney; Director, Ocean Program
Wednesday, September 27, 2017
On August 30, the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Council (the “Council”) announced that it is seeking public comment on a proposal to “approve implementation funding for the Robinson Preserve Wetlands Restoration project” in Florida. If the proposal is approved, the Council will allocate $1,790,546 in RESTORE Act (Pot 2) funds to implement the project, including a “reallocat[ion of] $470,910 from planning [funds] to implementation.” According to the Council, the project will restore approximately 118 acres of habitat, including coastal upland, wetland, and open water habitat types, in the Tampa Bay Watershed.
Mitigating Ocean Noise Impacts on Marine Mammals in Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction
By Greta Swanson, Visiting Attorney
Monday, September 25, 2017
Humans are rapidly increasing their industrial use of the ocean and its resources, resulting in great increases in underwater noise. Commercial shipping, naval sonar, seismic exploration, pile driving, acoustic deterrents for fishing, and seabed mining all produce ocean noise.
Brother(s), Can You Spare a Dime? Crowdfunding Environmental Action
By Lorentz Hansen, Research & Publications Intern, Dave Rejeski, Visiting Scholar, and Jessye Waxman, Research Associate
Wednesday, September 20, 2017
In 2008, as many financial instruments dissolved stranding their investors in seas of debt and spasms of panic, a new instrument appeared at the intersection of the crowd and the web: crowdfunding.
Emerging Environmental Issues in Native Communities
By Cynthia R. Harris, Staff Attorney; Director of Tribal Programs; Deputy Director of the Center for State, Tribal, and Local Environmental Programs
Monday, September 18, 2017
Tribes and Native villages are demonstrating reinvigorated environmental activism as they face increased pressures on natural resource use. Consequently, some of the most significant new developments in environmental law are occurring in Indian country. This month, ELI features a two-part webinar series on “Emerging Environmental Issues in Native Communities.”
Oh, SNAP! D.C. Circuit Limits EPA’s Authority to Regulate HFCs
By Robert Kelsey, Associate Editor, Environmental Law Reporter
Wednesday, September 13, 2017
On August 8, 2017, the D.C. Circuit held in Mexichem Fluor, Inc. v. EPA, No. 15-1328 (D.C. Cir. Aug. 8, 2017), that EPA overstepped its authority under the CAA when it banned the use of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) in products. HFCs were adopted as alternatives to ozone-depleting substances (ODSs) in the 1990s under the Montreal Protocol. Their adoption was encouraged through application of EPA's Significant New Alternatives Policy (SNAP) Program, which was created to help implement U.S.
The Death of Public Citizen in Pipeline NEPA Analysis
By Howard Nelson, Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig, Kenneth M. Minesinger, Shareholder, Greenberg Traurig, and Gus Howard, Attorney, Greenberg Traurig
Monday, September 11, 2017
Last month, the D.C. Circuit held in a 2-1 opinion that FERC was required to consider the downstream emissions created by power plants to be served by a proposed pipeline in Florida. The case not only raises questions about the scope of FERC’s NEPA review for new natural gas pipeline projects, but also about the application of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Department of Transportation v. Public Citizen, 541 U.S. 752 (2004).
