Taking climate change to the courts
On Friday, October 16, a second major US appeals court ruled that victims of climate change can sue polluters. In Comer v. Murphy Oil USA (5th Cir.), victims of Hurricane Katrina sued a number of companies that produce fossil fuels for causing greenhouse gas emissions that contributed to cli…
View the post titled Taking climate change to the courtsCan the precautionary principle be used to block wind energy?
A Big Island resident, Ian Hanna, launched judicial review today to block renewable energy approvals under the regulations recently adopted to implement Bill 150, the Green Energy Act. Mr. Hanna argues that it is contrary to the precautionary principle to allow wind energy development in Ont…
View the post titled Can the precautionary principle be used to block wind energy?Ontario's GHG reporting regulation
The Ministry of the Environment is seeking comments until November 6 on a draft Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions Reporting regulation and guideline. The draft is very similar to the US GHG reporting regulation which was adopted last month. The regulation proposes:
View the post titled Ontario's GHG reporting regulationWhy are so many environmental lawyers women?
Someone asked me again today: why are so many environmental lawyers women? In fact, why are so many environmental professionals women? The answer has been the same throughout my 35 year career – for women, on average, doing good is more important and money / status are less important t…
View the post titled Why are so many environmental lawyers women?Is Wal-Mart’s green agenda for real?
We love the concept of mega-corporations competing on their “sustainability quotient”, as long as the results are legitimate and not just greenwashing. Wal-Mart deserves credit for its new initiative, but also careful scrutiny to see what it produces.
View the post titled Is Wal-Mart’s green agenda for real?Will wind destabilize our grid?
At higher levels of renewable generation, power balancing is only possible when wind energy generators share the risk and responsibility of matching generation to load.
View the post titled Will wind destabilize our grid?The most important environmental cases of 2009
What do you think are the most important environmental law cases in Canada in 2009 so far?
View the post titled The most important environmental cases of 2009General Chemical directors settle personal claim
This spring, the Environmental Review Tribunal approved a multi-million dollar settlement between the Ministry of the Environment and the officers and directors of General Chemical. General Chemical famously declared bankruptcy, abandoning a badly contaminated lagoon. Just before bankruptcy,…
View the post titled General Chemical directors settle personal claimGHG reporting in Ontario
Ontario has released its draft regulations expanding greenhouse gas emission reporting in Ontario. Parallelling the GHG emisson reporting regulation recently adopted in the US, this regulation will gather the data necessary to support the promised cap and trade program.
View the post titled GHG reporting in OntarioReal climate leadership
Canada’s inaction on climate change was underscored again by Monday’s stunning announcement from Barack Obama’s White House. Demonstrating a commitment to lead by example, President Obama signed an Executive Order (attached) that sets sustainability goals for Federal agenci…
View the post titled Real climate leadershipReceive Blog Posts
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