May
23
2014
Widener’s Environmental Law Center has issued a white paper on the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s December 19, 2013 decision in Robinson Township v. Commonwealth. In this case, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court held unconstitutional major parts of Pennsylvania’s “Act 13”—a 2012 oil and gas law designed to facilitate the development of natural gas from Marcellus Shale. In so […]
May
08
2014
In its 1978 decision in Tennessee Valley Authority v. Hill, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Endangered Species Act prohibited the closure of a dam on the Little Tennessee River. The absence of free flowing water, the Court decided, would jeopardize the continued existence of the snail darter, a small fish that lived only in […]
Jan
14
2013
Sponsored by the Widener Environmental Law Center 2013 Environmental Law Distinguished Speaker Series | DOWNLOAD The Brochure (.pdf) | WHEN: February 7, February 19 & April 18, 2013 WHERE: Widener University School of Law Delaware AND Harrisburg Speaker Series blog: blogs.law.widener.edu/envirolawcenter Dinah Shelton February 7, 2013—12:15 p.m. Delaware Campus “Environmental Rights in the Jurisprudence of […]
Nov
12
2012
Cambridge, United Kingdom—Stars and a full moon covered the sky over this city on the night that the eye of Hurricane Sandy crossed over my house in Pennsylvania. And, at the end of BBC’s all-night coverage of the presidential election, Mitt Romney gave his concession speech just as the sky began to lighten. Such is […]
Nov
08
2012
Dear Friends: You’ll find the latest annual report from the Widener Environmental Law Center at: http://blogs.law.widener.edu/envirolawcenter/files/2011/05/2011_12-Annual-Report-newsletter-final.pdf. A few highlights. We formed the Center under the motto “Law for Sustainability” to harness the expertise of the seven full-time environmental law faculty on Widener’s Harrisburg and Delaware campuses. Widener Law has one of the hardiest and longest-standing […]
Jul
31
2012
On July 26, 2012, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court issued its decision in Robinson Township et al. v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, No. 284 MD 2012 (available at http://www.pacourts.us/OpPosting/Cwealth/out/284MD12_7-26-12.pdf.) In Part I of this series of blog posts, I discussed the background and general aspects of the decision; in Part II, the nullification of § 3304’s requirements […]
Jul
30
2012
On July 26, 2012, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court issued its decision in Robinson Township et al. v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, No. 284 MD 2012 (available at http://www.pacourts.us/OpPosting/Cwealth/out/284MD12_7-26-12.pdf.) In Part I of this series of blog posts (see down below this post), I discussed the background and general aspects of the decision. In this Part II, […]
Jul
30
2012
On July 26, 2012, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court issued its decision in Robinson Township et al. v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, No. 284 MD 2012 (available at http://www.pacourts.us/OpPosting/Cwealth/out/284MD12_7-26-12.pdf.) The headline take-away from the decision is that the Commonwealth Court struck down as unconstitutional those provisions of Pennsylvania’s Oil and Gas Act that mandated changes in local […]
Jun
22
2012
What role can law and lawyers play in the quest for sustainability? That question has been discussed in a wide variety of side events here, including a Colloquium on Environmental Law and Justice at the Supreme Court of the State of Rio de Janeiro, a World Meeting of Environmental Lawyers at the Rio de Janeiro […]
Jun
19
2012
The U.N. Conference on Sustainable Development here in Rio de Janeiro is occurring on the 20th anniversary of the famous 1992 Earth Summit, also in Rio de Janeiro. At the Earth Summit, heads of state did not just say that sustainable development is a good idea. They also, and more importantly, pledged to make it […]