On May 6, 2013, the Appellate Body of the World Trade Organization (WTO)’s dispute settlement system held that Ontario’s feed-in tariff (FIT) program to support renewable energy development was inconsistent with Canada’s international trade obligations. The decision confirmed the conclusion reached by the dispute settlement panel which first ruled on […]
Solar Power
27 posts
by Teresa Parejo Navajas, Professor of Law, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (Spain). In December 2012 the European Commission awarded over €1.2 billion funding to 23 highly innovative renewable energy demonstration projects under the first call for proposals for the so-called NER300 funding program. Projects will be co-financed with revenues […]
The ongoing trade disputes between the U.S. and China have escalated in recent weeks, with both nations filing new requests for consultations through the Dispute Settlement Body of the World Trade Organization (WTO). While these disputes span a broad range of issues and products, renewable energy technologies have been one […]
By Michael Babakitis, Legal Intern Governor Chris Christie signed a bill on Monday, July 23rd, that will require New Jersey’s utilities to procure 2.05% of their electricity from solar projects in 2014 (.5% more than would have otherwise been required) and to procure 4.1% of their electricity from solar projects […]
By Katee Kline, Legal Intern On July 24, the Department of the Interior released a final programmatic environmental impact statement (PEIS) identifying prime areas for solar development, approving seventeen large-scale energy projects on public lands, and outlining the procedure for approval of similar projects. The PEIS, authored by the DOI’s Bureau […]
By Julia Ciardullo Fellow This is the third and final blog that discusses some of the most notable recent legal developments in the field of intellectual property law and green technology. In two prior posts, we discussed (1) the expiration of the USPTO’s Green Technology Pilot Program and the enactment […]
Columbia Law School’s Center for Climate Change Law (CCCL) has prepared a first draft of a model small-scale solar-siting ordinance. The model ordinance offers a framework that can enable municipalities to implement and enforce the effective and efficient use of solar energy resources. The ordinance would govern all new solar […]
by Daniel M. Firger Associate Director Note: a longer version of this article first appeared in BNA’s Daily Environment Report (No. 133, 12 July 2011). Climate change is poised to become the next big thing in international trade law, but not for the reason most experts have long predicted. The […]