Climate Law Blog

Jennifer M. Klein, Esq. Associate Director & Fellow The Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) recently finalized a rule regarding the storage of highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel at individual power plants beyond the duration of each plant’s operating license. The NRC’s Final Generic Environmental Impact Statement (GEIS) for the rule addressed potential climate change impacts during the time […]

by Jordana Fremed, Summer Intern In September 2015, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service will decide whether or not to list the greater sage-grouse as threatened under the Endangered Species Act of 1973.[1] The proposed listing has caused conflict between two groups of environmentalists: conservationists and advocates of renewable energy such as wind power. The […]

By Yeein Lee, Summer Legal Intern Even as President Obama’s commitment to fight climate change has led his Administration to support low-carbon nuclear power,[1] many U.S nuclear power plants are being shut down or slated to shut down, and fewer companies are seeking licenses to build new plants. Although the US is still the world’s largest […]

By Alyssa Kutner, Summer Legal Intern There has been a lot of discussion and press around the EPA’s new Clean Power Plan, which is intended to reduce CO2 emissions from existing power plants by 30% from 2005 levels by 2030. The EPA proposed this plan on June 2nd under its Clean Air Act §111(d) authority, which […]

By Yeein Lee, Summer Legal Intern On Thursday May 29th, the eleventh biennial conference on key and emerging environmental issues in the EPA Region 2 area was held at Columbia Law School. This teeming conference consisted of four panels, each on separate yet correlated environmental topics around New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico and the […]

A new paper by Katherine Carey looks at the different actions that state utility commissions in the Southeast have taken to ensure that their electric utilities are prepared for tomorrow’s storms. The Gulf Coast region in the Southeastern United States is at especially high risk of more severe hurricanes and tropical storms, but there are […]

Ethan I. Strell, CCCL Associate Director & Fellow In an historic decision that will serve as a nationwide model, the New York State Public Service Commission on February 20 unanimously approved a settlement requiring Con Edison to implement state-of-the-art measures to plan for and protect its electric, gas, and steam systems from the effects of […]

By Mark James, CCCL Legal Intern On January 8, 2014, the sole remaining coal-fired generating plant in Ontario burned its last tonne of coal. With the closure of the Nanticoke Generating Station, Ontario ended its long-term relationship with coal-fired generating plants. To further its commitment to a coal-free future, the government has recently introduced a […]

On June 25, 2013, President Obama delivered a major speech on the topic of climate change. In it he outlined a broad policy agenda aimed at addressing the challenges posed by the changing climate. The agenda, detailed in The President’s Climate Action Plan, relies almost entirely upon executive powers; Congress is not even mentioned in […]

New CCCL Paper: Envisioning Resilient Electrical Infrastructure by Sam Nierop, Visiting Scholar Only last week, a powerful storm left thousands without access to electricity across Europe.[1] Last year, Hurricane Sandy left more than 8 million people without power in the Northeastern United States.[2] As climate change amplifies the frequency and severity of storms, heat waves […]