Environmental & energy law professor. Founder and Faculty Director, Sabin Center for Climate Change Law, Columbia Law School. Environmental lawyer since 1979.
May 29, 2023 • 6 tweets • 1 min read
The debt ceiling bill just released by Biden and McCarthy includes many revisions to the National Environmental Policy Act (pp 71-98). Most of the revisions reflect current caselaw and practice. I think these are the most important new elements (in addition to the mandated 🧵
approval of the Mountain Valley Pipeline): 1. Lead agencies may allow project sponsors to prepare EA or EIS, though "lead agency shall independently evaluate the environmental document and shall take responsibility for the contents." [This is basically the procedure under
Jun 30, 2022 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
The Supreme Court has prematurely and unjustifiably removed one tool to fight climate change. But it's a large toolkit, and much remains.
-- EPA can still regulate GHGs from motor vehicles (the largest source)
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-- EPA can still regulate new stationary sources, like power plants and factories
-- The decision was basically about coal-fired power plants, but EPA can still regulate them in other ways, such as limiting their other air pollutants; coal ash; hot water discharges
Nov 23, 2018 • 12 tweets • 2 min read
Key findings of this federal report: 1. Communities: Climate change creates new risks and exacerbates existing vulnerabilities in communities across the United States, presenting growing challenges to human health and safety, quality of life, and the rate of economic growth.
2. Economy: Without substantial and sustained global mitigation and regional adaptation efforts, climate change is expected to cause growing losses to American infrastructure and property and impede the rate of economic growth over this century.
