Criminal Charges for Brooklyn Businesses, Dumping Raw Sewage

Four individuals and four businesses at a Brooklyn shopping center face criminal charges over dumping raw sewage and restaurant grease into Sheepshead Bay. The charges are punishable with charges of $75k per day and up to three years imprisonment.

Groups Applaud NY State Assembly for Passing a "Timeout" on Fracking for Natural Gas

Yesterday, the New York State Assembly voted to protect NY's watershed by passing legislation that puts a timeout on hydraulic fracturing for natural gas. By passing this bill, A.11443, the Assembly has taken a stand, and recognizes the potential hazards of fracking activities.


The bill suspends the issuance of permits to hydraulically fracture natural gas wells in New York State until May 15, 2011. 


For more info, check out this EarthJustice Press Release.

Norfolk, VA Prepares for Rising Sea Levels

The city of Norfolk (Virginia) will not sit around and just wait for sea-levels to rise. Situated just west of the mouth of Cheasapeake Bay, it is bordered on 3 sides by water, and has, thus far, experienced the highest relative increase in sea level on the East Coast (14.5" since 1930).

I sure hope other coastal cities (ahem...NYC...) follow suit. This is not a drill, people!

Halliburton Subpoenaed After Failing to Meet EPA’s Voluntary Requests for Information

The EPA announced yesterday that eight of nine U.S. companies that deal in hydraulic fracturing (aka "fracking") for natural gas extraction will work with the agency in studies on fracking. Who was the ninth? Of course, our old friends, Halliburton.

Halliburton has failed to provide EPA the information necessary to move forward with this important study. As a result, and as part of the Agency's effort to move forward as quickly as possible, today EPA issued a subpoena to the company requiring submission of the information that has yet to be provided.

What a shady bunch of characters, that Halliburton. Then again, the company is a perfect fit for someone like Mr. Dick Cheney. I guess shady companies invite shady individuals.

Next Week's Breakfast Forum - Building for New York's Future with Joseph B. Rose‏

Professors Andrew R. Berman and Ross Sandler cordially invite you to a Breakfast Forum on

Building for New York's Future

Co-sponsored by the Center for Real Estate Studies and the Center for New York City Law

Keynote Speaker: Joseph B. Rose, Partner, The Georgetown Company and Former Chairman, NYC Planning Commission

Date/Time: Wednesday, November 17, 2010 from 8:15-9:30 a.m.
Location: New York Law School, 185 West Broadway, between Leonard and Worth Streets

Registration: Online by clicking the invitation image below OR calling 212-431-2135

Work for Earthjustice Northeast! Summer 2011 Interns Wanted!

Earthjustice’s Northeast regional office (in New York City) is hiring full-time legal interns for the summer of 2011. Students who have completed at least two years of law school are preferred.

Legal interns work under the direct supervision of attorneys in the development and prosecution of environmental litigation and other advocacy. In general, the intern becomes a participant in the process of researching, investigating, preparing, and prosecuting environmental lawsuits. Virtually all interns undertake legal research, write memoranda, and help evaluate factual issues. Depending upon the needs of the case and the experience of the intern, attendance at client meetings, court appearances, meetings with public agency representatives, and drafting of pleadings, briefs, and discovery documents may be part of the internship experience. Interns are included in staff meetings and are invited to attend informal topical discussions and social events.

See below for Qualifications and Application Procedure.





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New Speaker, Old Mentality

"I voted in the 2010 mid-term elections, and all I got was this lousy Boehner."  I want this on a t-shirt.  Someone please mass produce. I will pay you $25.

It's true.  Nancy Pelosi will be out and it's reported that John Boehner (should be pronounced "boner"), will be knighted as the new Speaker of the House.  No surprise that the republican from Ohio "fought bitterly" against the cap-and-trade bill that was passed by the House last year. 

"The idea that carbon dioxide is a carcinogen that is harmful to our environment is almost comical," Mr. Boehner told ABC News in an April 2009 interview. "Every time we exhale, we exhale carbon dioxide. Every cow in the world, you know, when they do what they do, you've got more carbon dioxide."

No, Mr. Boehner.  That's not comical.  What's comical is that you think CO2 emissions and a cap-and-trade regulatory scheme have to do with cancer.  That, along with the pronunciation of your last name.

November 4th: NYLS Center for Real Estate Studies Master Class on Preservation (12:50pm-2pm)

You preservation junkies should enjoy this one. And there's free pizza lunch involved! Win-win!

The New York Law School Center for Real Estate Studies (CRES) will be hosting another one of its Master Class Series this Thursday, November 4th from 12:50pm-2pm in W320.

See full details below.





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Research and Environmental Policy Opportunity!

There are 3 things you should know about New York City over the next 25 years: (1) We will be getting BIGGER; (2) our infrastructure will be getting OLDER; and (3) our environment will be AT RISK. PlaNYC 2030 is a comprehensive sustainability plan for New York that addresses each of these challenges.

The Mayor's Long Term Planning and Sustainability Office wants to update PlaNYC 2030 and has reached out to us, the ELS of NYLS, for help.

We are looking for INTERESTED STUDENTS to work with us on this project.

We are still in the planning stage, but anticipate beginning on this project in early January 2011 (with a chance of starting even earlier). Before proceeding we need to gauge student interest, so...

If you ARE INTERESTED in tackling this research project with us and want more information, please contact Dorian Iafeliece (dorian.iafeliece@law.nyls.edu) by Monday, Nov. 8th, 2010. Students interested in sustainable development, green infrastructure and environmental law are encouraged to join us.

You will get an opportunity to work with top New York City Officials on how to make NYC are greener and better city to live in!

TV manufacturers will have to disclose energy-use data, starting 2011

I wonder how much of a fight the big TV manufacturers (Sony, Samsung, et al.) put up against this FTC regulation...

In the consumer-based economy that we live in, this type of disclosure rule is essential before we move towards sustainable living. We should be doing this for most appliances. I like the fact that the FTC is on board.

More internships! NY State Dept. of Environmental Conservation (Albany, NYC)

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation ("DEC") is looking for law-student interns to work within 2 of its legal departments. Those interested in environmental law, administrative law or New York State law, you are strongly encouraged to apply.


DEC's Central Office (Albany, NY) and Region 2 Office (Long Island City, NY) are seeking 2L and 3L legal interns.






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DOT, EPA Propose the Nation’s First Greenhouse Gas and Fuel Efficiency Standards for Trucks and Buses

EPA and DOT logos (2010)

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) today announced the first national standards to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and improve fuel efficiency of heavy-duty trucks and buses. This comprehensive national program is projected to reduce GHG emissions by about 250 million metric tons and save 500 million barrels of oil over the lives of the vehicles produced within the program’s first five years.

EPA and DOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) are proposing new standards for three categories of heavy trucks: combination tractors, heavy-duty pickups and vans, and vocational vehicles. The categories were established to address specific challenges for manufacturers in each area. For combination tractors, the agencies are proposing engine and vehicle standards that begin in the 2014 model year and achieve up to a 20 percent reduction in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and fuel consumption by 2018 model year.

Minority Fellowships in Environmental Law

This fellowship program is designed to encourage minority law students to enter the field of environmental law.

Presented by: NYSBA Environmental Law Section

Co-Sponsored By: NYC Bar Association Committee on Environmental Law and the ABA Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources.

Nomination Deadline: November 19, 2010





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Searching For Science In Marcellus Shale Decisions (Law360)

-Image: Geology.com

Law360, New York (October 20, 2010) -- Along with lower energy costs and new jobs, investment in the development of natural gas resources in the Marcellus Shale formation in Pennsylvania has brought claims of groundwater contamination and litigation to the commonwealth. Marcellus Shale development has also precipitated increased scrutiny by federal and state lawmakers and regulators.

Critical and scientific evaluation of reports and other information concerning the potential link between Marcellus Shale production activities and environmental problems is essential to reasoned decisions in the courtroom and in setting public policy for this industry.





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Feds to propose FIRST EVER truck fuel efficiency rules

From the Associated Press: 

"Future tractor-trailers, school buses, delivery vans, garbage trucks and heavy-duty pickup trucks must do better at the pump under first-ever fuel efficiency rules coming from the Obama administration."

"The fleet of new cars, pickup trucks and SUVs will need to reach 35.5 miles per gallon by 2016, and the government is developing plans for future vehicle models that could push the standards to 47 mpg to 62 mpg by 2025."

Is this good enough?

Tea Party, Climate Change and God

From the N.Y. Times:

"Climate change is real, and man is causing it,” Mr. Hill said, echoing most climate scientists. “That is indisputable. And we have to do something about it.”

A rain of boos showered Mr. Hill, including a hearty growl from Norman Dennison, a 50-year-old electrician and founder of the Corydon Tea Party.

“It’s a flat-out lie,” Mr. Dennison said in an interview after the debate, adding that he had based his view on the preaching of Rush Limbaugh and the teaching of Scripture. “I read my Bible,” Mr. Dennison said. “He made this earth for us to utilize.”

Paterson Sacks DEC Head Grannis

This is going to get real interesting real fast.  On Tuesday, the Times-Union reported on a leaked DEC memo that set out the dire consequences of laying off more than 200 agency employees.  On Thursday, DEC Commissioner Pete Grannis was fired by Gov. Paterson for “poor performance and insubordination.”

”Here I am being called on the carpet for doing what we were supposed to do, for being asked to tell the administration what the cuts they want meant,” Grannis said. “Apparently facts don’t sit well with this administration.”
Grannis protested that the memo was not leaked with his knowledge, and left two telephone messages with Paterson, one Wednesday evening and another Thursday morning, seeking a chance to make his case. “Larry Schwartz said the governor would not talk to me,” Grannis said.

Read the full article for details of the increasingly heated exchange between Grannis and Paterson aide he has called a “hatchet man” and a “thug".

Extreme Droughts Taking Toll on South, Midwest

"Parts of Alabama, Louisiana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee, Missouri, Kentucky, Florida and southern Indiana are suffering 'extreme drought,' according to data expected to be released by the [National Drought Mitigation Center] Thursday."

"Climatologists say the dry weather likely will continue at least until spring, raising the possibility of prolonged drought in some areas next summer."

READ THE REST OF THE WSJ ARTICLE


BETTER YET, READ THE USER COMMENTS! The first comment is from a "climate change denier", who is using 3 straight days of rain as his sign that climate change is a hoax. 


I thought we were past that...

EPA Proposes to Add Nine New Hazardous Waste Sites to Superfund's National Priorities List

The Superfund National Priorities List (NPL) keeps getting bigger and bigger. On October 19, the EPA declared it was proposing to add another 9 contaminated sites to the list.


"To date, 1,627 sites have been listed on the NPL. There have been 346 sites deleted from the NPL with 1,281 sites remaining.   With the proposal of nine new sites and one site being withdrawn from proposal, there are 62 proposed sites awaiting final agency action:  57 in the general Superfund section and five in the federal facilities section.  There are a total of 1,343 final and proposed sites."


READ THE REST OF THE EPA PRESS RELEASE

Client Counseling Competition (ABA Law Student Division). DEADLINE Oct. 22!

A competition promoting preventative law and counseling functions. Entry forms and fees are due OCTOBER 22, 2010. 


Team member names and ABA ID numbers are due JANUARY 25, 2011.


CLICK HERE for the Client Competition Homepage
CLICK HERE for the 2010-2011 Entry Form


2010-2011 Competition Topic: Professional Responsibility of Lawyers and Judges


Questions? Contact ccc@staff.abanet.org