December 4, 2023
by Bill Shultz
State and Local
Water
Concentrated animal feeding operations are explicitly named as a point source under the Clean Water Act, but the EPA has been woefully ineffective at monitoring and regulating manure discharges, leaving water and human health at risk.
April 10, 2023
by Benjamin Wilken
Water
The American West is dry. Despite extreme weather events like the series of atmospheric rivers that doused the West Coast (from late 2022 until the time of this piece’s composition), capable of dumping up to half an inch of rain an hour,[1] the overall…
February 13, 2023
by Allie Williams
Climate change
State and Local
Water
By Allie Williams, Staff Contributor.
January 29, 2021
by Alec Williams
Climate change
International
Oceans
Water
By Eleanor Hildebrandt, Staff Contributor
The effects of climate change will make swaths of the planet uninhabitable, displacing millions of people. How can the United States’ legal system facilitate an equitable, humanitarian response to those seeking safe resettlement within its borders?
December 1, 2020
by Scott Fletcher
State and Local
Water
By: Alexander Collingsworth, Staff Contributor
Residents of Flint, Michigan will likely receive some compensation soon for the poisoning of their drinking water. In August, the state of Michigan settled claims against it and Michigan officials, including former Governor Rick Snyder, for $600 million. What are the implications of the Michigan Supreme Court decision that opened the way for this settlement? And how much money are individual residents likely to see?
February 26, 2020
by Sara Douki
Energy
Fossil Fuels
Natural Resources
Oil and Gas
Renewable Energy
State and Local
Water
Gabriel Dowdell, Staff Contributor
Should the EPA regulate fracking more heavily? Currently, states that benefit financially from fracking regulate the industry.
March 18, 2019
by Alexander Pappas
State and Local
Water
By Catherine Schluter, Staff Contributor
Pork is a big part of the American diet, but pig farming has serious environmental and human health consequences. North Carolina is one of the biggest pork producers in the country, but its state legislature, like many other states, is putting pork profits over sufficient protections.
January 24, 2019
by Gregory Harned
Climate change
Energy
Fossil Fuels
International
Litigation
Natural Resources
Water
By Scott Novak, Staff Contributor
Whereas the Refugee Convention does not provide relief for climate change refugees like Teitiota, the Alien Tort Statute (ATS) might.
November 15, 2018
by De Vann Sago
Climate change
Public Lands
State and Local
Water
By Ryan Levandowski, Staff Contributor. As rising sea levels threaten California’s coast, the state’s characteristic beaches have become a battleground for homeowners, cities, and state regulatory agencies. Because coastal adaptation policies often pit preservation of public beaches against private property rights, recent litigation over the issue has posed a difficult question for courts: Who should (literally) give ground?
October 3, 2018
by Caitlin Meagher
Endangered Species
Public Lands
State and Local
Water
Wildlife
By Caroline McHugh, Staff Contributor
The Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971 protected horses and burros in the American West. Now the population has recovered (and then some). How do federal agencies approach increasingly conflicting mandates for public land management?