Environmental Law Matters Blog | Burr & Forman LLP

Climate Change: Nations United-Nations Divided?

Tue, 01 Dec 2015 09:00:01 -0500

The third global summit on climate change has begun its meetings in Paris. Unlike the two previous summits, in Kyoto (1997) and Copenhagen (2009), there is optimism that an agreement under the auspices of the United Nations might be reached. (Paris Deal Important First Step).

This optimism apparently has its origin, in substantial part, based on an agreement between the United States and China, the two largest carbon pollution emitters in the world. Yet, while the President may have made inroads to persuading China that emissions reductions are merited, and he has also put his own ...

Climate Change and Creative Problem Solving

Tue, 03 Nov 2015 09:00:02 -0500

A story in the New York Times recently portrays the ice cap in Greenland as rapidly disappearing. (NYT). Indeed, the pictures are dramatic. The story is based on experiences and observations from scientists working in the area, and it tends to support similar claims made by researchers in recent years about changing conditions in Greenland. At the same time, those who deny that global warming is occurring, or at least that it is not significantly caused by human activity, have pointed to other reasons for the reduction in the ice cap there. (Junk Science) Thus, observations are made that ...

Flint Water System Troubles May Signal Numerous, Potentially Broad-Ranging Problems

Thu, 08 Oct 2015 09:00:03 -0400

For the City of Flint, Michigan, the immediate problem is that the water it provides its citizens is not safe to drink. For many other communities across the nation, the problem may be whether they can do the things necessary to avoid a similar fate. On Thursday, October 1, local health officials in Flint declared a public health emergency warning that the City's public water supply is causing elevated lead levels in children (Water Crisis in Flint). Residents were warned not to drink the water unless it has been filtered at the tap, and the State's governor promised to provide $1 million ...

Clean Power Rule Challenges Will Proceed Sooner or Later, But Its Goal May Already Be Close at Hand

Wed, 02 Sep 2015 09:00:04 -0400

Legal challenges filed almost immediately after President Obama announced the Clean Power Rule may be premature. That is what attorneys for EPA told the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit recently in response to an action brought by West Virginia and several other states. The fundamental issue according to EPA attorneys is that a challenge is not ripe until the regulation is published in the Federal Register, and that may not occur for several weeks. (The Hill). The particular issue raised by the petitioners is an effort to stay the effect of the Rule while the ...

Obama Announces Clean Power Plan, Fights to Follow

Thu, 06 Aug 2015 09:00:05 -0400

On August 3, 2015, President Obama announced the finalization of the long-awaited Clean Power Plan, a policy primarily intended to further the commitment to combatting global warming. The Plan focuses on the electric power generating sector of the nation's economy, which is responsible for approximately 31% of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions (primarily carbon dioxide, fluorinated gases, and nitrous oxide). The Plan intends to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 to levels below those generated in 2005. A fact sheet provided by U.S. EPA to accompany the President's ...

Supreme Court Halts Implementation of EPA Rule on Mercury Emissions from Electric Power Plants: The Practical Effects Are Debatable

Wed, 01 Jul 2015 09:00:06 -0400

On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court halted further implementation of a U.S. EPA's regulation limiting mercury and other hazardous air toxic emissions from coal- and oil-fired electric power plants. In a 5-4 decision, the majority held that EPA failed to take costs into account when deciding to regulate power plants under this rule, thereby imposing substantial and costly emissions limits and control requirements on them. However, the Court did not strike down the rule, instead remanding the case for further proceedings. The Opinion can be viewed here. Members of Congress and ...

EPA Issues Clean Water Rule Defining Waters Of The United States

Mon, 01 Jun 2015 09:00:07 -0400

On Tuesday, May 26, 2015, EPA issued a long-awaited rule defining "Waters of the United States." Elsewhere, on EPA's Clean Water Rule webpage, there are a number of fact sheets and information intended to explain and support the rule as proposed. EPA apparently found this scope of detail and explanation necessary due to the significant opposition to the rule. Even before publication, the rule had generated a great deal of opposition. The proposed definition has been viewed by a number of groups as effecting a broad expansion of federal authority over water-bearing bodies that had ...

Five Georgia Environmental Bills to Watch in 2015

Tue, 12 May 2015 09:00:08 -0400

Georgia legislature warms up to solar panels, gets protective of coastal marshes, withdraws support for electric cars, and sacrifices LEED certifications in favor of jobs. April 2, 2015 marked final adjournment of the 2015 Georgia legislative session. Upon adjournment, the legislature sends five key environmental bills to Governor Deal for signing. (1) HB 57 - Solar Power Free-Market Financing Act of 2015 ("Solar Freedom Bill") The Solar Freedom Bill allows property owners to finance the addition of solar panels to their properties as they would finance cars or homes. The ...

Corn-Based Ethanol Debate Intensifies - - A Bit

Fri, 01 May 2015 09:00:09 -0400

A recent article in USA Today questions whether ethanol's days are numbered. While that article is written from the perspective of whether the stock of ethanol producing companies is a good investment, it focuses on some of the issues that frame the debate about continued support for ethanol as a fuel addictive. That use stems from a congressional mandate set out in 2005 requiring 10% of the nation's fuel to be blended with ethanol. Since over 130 billion gallons of gasoline are sold annually in the United States, that means approximately 13 billion gallons of ethanol are produced, the ...

Georgia General Assembly Ends Water and Land Conservation Tax Credits

Thu, 30 Apr 2015 09:00:10 -0400

At the end of its recent session, the Georgia General Assembly passed HB 464 by unanimous votes to cap the land conservation tax credit at $30 million for 2016 and then eliminate it altogether at the end of 2016. HB 464 also repeals the tax credits for water conservation facilities and ending groundwater usage, effective at the end of 2016. The original bill, introduced by Representative Bruce Williamson (R-115; Monroe), did not address the land conservation tax credit. Section 1 of the original bill repeals the tax credit for water conservation facilities; Section 2 ends the tax credit ...