By Carter Hall—November 20, 2014 at 11:03 a.m. On June 30 of this year the Court of Appeals of New York issued its final ruling in Wallach v. Town of Dryden, holding that municipalities in New York State have the authority to exclude hydraulic fracturing from their borders through zoning.[1] Although the case hinged upon the interpretation of a New York statute with no reach … [Read more...] about Wallach v. Town of Dryden and Local Control of Hydraulic Fracturing
regulated industry
FERC and the future of energy efficiency
By Kelsey Bagot -- Aug. 21, 2013 at 5:10pm With U.S. climate-change bills and international climate talks repeatedly facing defeat, one of the main ways for the United States to significantly reduce its greenhouse gas emissions could be through both improving grid efficiency and transmission and integrating renewable energy into the electricity network. But surprisingly (or … [Read more...] about FERC and the future of energy efficiency
Subsidies with Responsibilities: Placing Stewardship and Disclosure Conditions on Government Payments to Large Scale Commodity Crop Operations
By Linda Breggin and D. Bruce Myers Jr. The last century marked a sea change in the way agricultural operations are conducted. This “industrialization” of agriculture has significantly increased efficiency and yields, but it also has generated — as an unintended byproduct — pollution. The pollution resulting from commodity crop operations can have harmful effects locally and … [Read more...] about Subsidies with Responsibilities: Placing Stewardship and Disclosure Conditions on Government Payments to Large Scale Commodity Crop Operations
The Obama Administration’s National Auto Policy: Lessons from the “Car Deal”
By Jody Freeman This Article is the first comprehensive analysis of the Obama Administration’s national auto policy, which set the first federal greenhouse gas standards and strictest fuel efficiency standards for new cars and trucks in U.S. history. It describes the complicated legal, administrative and political background that led to a harmonized federal program, including … [Read more...] about The Obama Administration’s National Auto Policy: Lessons from the “Car Deal”
Comment: Howmet Corp. v. EPA
By Nathan Kilbert In Howmet Corp. v. EPA, 614 F.3d 544 (D.C. Cir. 2010), the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit upheld a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA” or “the Agency”) enforcement action as consistent with EPA’s regulations defining regulable “spent material” under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (“RCRA”). The court’s decision is a … [Read more...] about Comment: Howmet Corp. v. EPA