Environmental Law

The Center for Computer-Assisted Legal Instruction (CALI) hosts and facilitates the creation of CALI Lessons, a library of over 950 interactive legal tutorials written by law professors and geared towards law students. CALI is a 501(c)(3) non-profit consortium of law schools, law libraries and related organizations. Almost every United States law school is a member of CALI and they make up the bulk of our membership.

This course covers key environmental laws, including the National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Air Act, and Clean Water Act, as well as issues relating to waste management and international environmental law.

This Outline summarizes the basic black letter rules of Environmental Law in a way that allows students to appreciate how different parts of their course material fit together. Ideal for class preparation or as a review before exams. The Outline covers approaches to environmental regulations, constitutional issues in Environmental Law, the National Environmental Policy Act, Clean Water Act, Clean Air Act, Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, Comprehensive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act and other toxic substances statutes. The Outline also discusses the complex intersection of law, sciences such as biology, geology, and engineering, and important economic, ethical, and social issues. It also includes a glossary of environmental terms and practice exam questions.

Policies regarding sustainable development and climate change management appeared on the world stage at the same time and should be studied and understood as a single body of law. This Nutshell enables readers to learn how the U.S. legal system fosters greenhouse gas reduction, energy conservation, and sustainable patterns of growth including energy efficient and sustainable buildings, the use of renewable energy resources, the protection of sequestering open space, and the adaptation of buildings and communities to sea level rise and natural disasters.

Climate Change Law is the first book to offer a concise, readable treatment of this entire rapidly evolving body of law. Climate law runs the gamut from state and local regulations to federal policies and international agreements and includes both public and private sector involvement. This issue is just too important to leave to specialists alone. The focus is on core concepts of climate change law rather than all of the complex details. The book begins by discussing the scientific and policy issues that frame the legal scheme, including the state of climate science, the meaning of the social cost of carbon, and the variety of tools that are available to reduce carbon emissions. It then covers in turn the international, national, and state efforts in this sphere. Finally, the book turns to the challenge of adapting to climate change, before exploring the concept of geoengineering and the potential challenges associated with using geoengineering as a tool for addressing climate change. The new edition covers major developments such as the Supreme Court’s decision in West Virginia v. EPA, Trump Administration rollbacks and their subsequent fates, climate litigation brought by state and local governments, and the implementation of the Paris Agreement. The book is designed to be accessible to a broad range of readers, not just those who have backgrounds in climate science, environmental economics, or law.

Environmental Law and Policy is a user-friendly, concise, affordable treatment of environmental law. Written to be highly readable and enjoyable rather than a dry reference source, the book provides a broad conceptual overview of environmental law while also explaining the major statutes and cases. The book includes multiple problem exercises, describing a legal or policy conflict in detail and asking students to identify and assess solutions. The new edition is fully updated to include policy initiatives of the Biden Administration, important recent Supreme Court decisions through the 2023-2024 term (Sackett, Loper Bright Enterprises, Jarkesy, Cedar Point Nursery), and the emerging role of Native American tribes in environmental law. The first part of the book provides an engaging discussion of the major themes and issues that cross-cut environmental law, including a new problem exercise on the Rights of Nature. The second part of the book examines the substance of environmental law, with separate sections on each of the major statutes. The third part of the book discusses important issues of natural resources law, including the public trust doctrine, endangered species conservation, wetlands protection, and energy issues. Part four addresses environmental impact statements and the National Environmental Policy Act. The book is one of the most widely adopted environmental texts not only in law schools but in both undergraduate and graduate classes.

Farber’s Environmental Law in a Nutshell provides an up-to-date foundation for understanding environmental law. Expert text includes coverage of the full range of environmental issues, from climate change and air pollution, to waste disposal and wetlands. Surveys the many statutory and common-law regulations shaping the world in which we live.

The stories in this book feature characters as diverse as community activists, small farmers, big businesses, dedicated scientists, skilled lawyers, strong-willed judges, and Presidents of the United States. Four of the ten selected cases established the field of environmental law, three others refined it, and the final three have sought to limit its effectiveness and reach. This selection mirrors the development of the field of environmental law, from the first, heady days of its creation to its current conflicts with other laws and values, including some embedded in the Constitution.

This book provides an overview of the three pillars of the ESG movement—environmental, social, and governance—in both the United States and a sample of other countries. In addition to exploring major statutes and regulations, the book provides an overview of the types of cases in this sector. The book also tracks the evolution of ESG and discusses key trends, including the growth of the anti-ESG movement in the U.S.

This book is designed to facilitate the introduction of international and comparative legal issues into the basic environmental law course, but could also be used in a seminar on the subject. It covers constitutional protection of the environment; the precautionary principle; intergenerational equity; international and comparative approaches to the regulation of air, water, and toxic substance pollution; global climate change; wildlife and biodiversity preservation; the law of the sea; and management of oceans and coastal areas. Once introduced to the challenges of effectively addressing environmental problems, students can easily appreciate the value of concerted international efforts to address those challenges.

This well received book, informed by its interdisciplinary framework, succinctly yet accurately traverses and illuminates the full gamut of international environmental issues, laws and policies challenging the world today. The fifth edition responds to important developments arising subsequent to the fourth edition, relating, inter alia, to sustainable development, climate change, and energy. These developments include the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of 2015, the 2015 Paris Agreement on Climate Change that replaced the Kyoto Protocol, and the challenges posed by renewable energy and global poverty. In sum, the book offers an insightful analysis of the relevant treaties, customary law, and soft law instruments governing all areas of international environmental law.

The law of hazardous wastes and toxic substances is a specialized field involving the overlap of federal and state statutes, science, economics, and public policy. This text covers the regulation of the production, sale, use, and disposal of toxic substances, ranging from pesticides to chemicals to genetically-engineered animals. It also addresses the “cradle-to-grave” regulation of hazardous wastes under RCRA and the cleanup of these wastes under CERCLA, the Superfund law

Written in a conversational tone, this book familiarizes readers with the basic mechanics of the major environmental statutes, including, among others, the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act, the National Environmental Policy Act, and the Endangered Species Act. It also includes a separate chapter on how these environmental statutes are enforced by the Government and through citizen suits.

The new edition adds dozens of recent decisions and key statutory changes. Virtually every principal case in the leading casebooks is cited or discussed, making it an excellent aid for students in any water law course. The revised book deals with changes in evolving areas like groundwater-surface water conflicts, public recreational uses, instream flow protection, federal water development, takings claims, and public interest concerns.