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Law and the Environment

Our blog provides perspective on developments in environmental law and policy - which developments may matter to you, and how and why they matter. Whether you are a manufacturer or a power plant developer, a renewable energy developer or hoping to be a renewable energy consumer, this blog offers commentary on current issues that are important to your business.

EPA Still Has Authority to Regulate in the Face of Uncertainty
Blog August 28, 2026
Last week, in Chamber of Commerce v. EPA, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected challenges to EPA’s decision to list PFOA and PFOS, the two most prominent PFAS compounds, as hazardous substances under CERCLA…
The 9th Circuit Affirms Dismissal in G.B. v. EPA; Is It the End (for now) For Citizens' Climate Litigation?
Blog April 30, 2026
Earlier this month, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed dismissal of plaintiffs’ claims in G.B. v. EPA, another of the children’s climate cases…
How Much Deference to Agency NEPA Decisions After Seven County? Definitely
Blog January 08, 2026
Judges inclined to support agency decision making would point to the deference given to agency decisions under the APA, while judges unsympathetic to the agency position would point to the limits on deference to the agencies…
The Prospects For Climate Change Litigation Against the United States Government Continue to Dim
Blog October 21, 2025
Last year, when the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals granted a mandamus petition and ordered that the complaint in Juliana v. United States be dismissed for the second time, I acknowledged that I had become more skeptical about the prospects for citizens’ climate litigation…
Montana Protects a Constitutional Right to a Stable Climate:  Will Any Other States Follow Suit?
Blog December 19, 2024
The Montana Supreme Court affirmed a lower court ruling in favor of plaintiffs in a climate case based on certain provisions of the Montana constitution…
The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals Really Doesn't Want to Decide Who Has Standing to Bring CAA Penalty Claims
Blog December 13, 2024
Earlier this week, in what almost certainly has to be the most fractured appellate decision in the history of the United States courts, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, sitting en banc, affirmed via per curiam decision the 2021 District Court judgment in Environment Texas Citizen Lobby v. ExxonMobil Corporation…
If CEQ No Longer Implements NEPA, Is that Good or Bad for Project Developers?
Blog November 14, 2024
Earlier this week, the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that the National Environmental Policy Act does not authorize the Council on Environmental Quality to issue binding regulations governing how federal agencies must implement NEPA…
Fluoridation May Not Be A Commie Plot, But It Does Apparently Present Unreasonable Risks
Blog October 02, 2024
For those of us of a certain age, Sterling Hayden's speech as Jack D. Ripper in Dr. Strangelove concerning the Communist plot to fluoridate our water is iconic. Well, it turns out that the old adage may be true. Just because it’s a conspiracy theory doesn’t mean that they’re not out to get us…
Some Evidence that Deference to Agency Technical Decisions May Survive Loper-Bright
Blog August 15, 2024
A decision by the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals provided some confirmation that judicial deference to agency technical decisions is alive and well post-Chevron. In Huntsman Petrochemical v. EPA, the court rejected a challenge to EPA’s emissions limitation for ethylene oxide…
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ABOUT

In today’s fast changing world, almost all of us get our news – including our news about developments in environmental law and policy – electronically. This blog is not intended to be a substitute for the BNA™, or Greenwire™, or Google™, although we do hope that we will be able on occasion to let you know about issues that haven’t yet come to your attention.

What we really want to accomplish is to be able to provide some perspective on those developments. We’ll try to tell you which developments may matter to you. And why they matter. And how they matter. Whether you are a manufacturer or a power plant developer, whether you are a renewable energy developer or hoping to be a renewable energy consumer, whether you are a municipality or public agency or university, we want to comment on current issues in a way that is useful to you in your business.

Frankly, this blog also provides us with the opportunity to introduce you to Foley Hoag’s Environmental Practice Group. Our practice has been New England’s preeminent environmental practice for the past twenty years. We have the depth and capacity to handle the wide array of environmental issues that can arise in the course of your business. We will work with you to resolve any environmental issues that must be addressed in order for you to achieve your business goals – from permitting new projects to cost-effective cleanup of urban Brownfields properties to implementation of cost-effective due diligence in the support of acquisitions to navigating the emerging world of climate change regulations.

We will also assist you in the defense and prosecution of environmental litigation. As a result of our service to our clients, we have attained a national reputation in environmental matters. Our lawyers have built an impressive record resolving environmental disputes at the negotiating table and in the courtroom, and a number of our cases have produced precedents of national importance.

The scope of this blog will be commensurate with the scope of our practice. We’ll cover climate change, renewable energy, hazardous and solid waste, clean air and water, sustainability and green design. You name it, if it’s got an acronym attached to it, we’ll cover it.

As the headline indicates, we want to inform, update, comment, and discuss. In other words, while we’re going to enjoy posting, we’ll enjoy the blog more – and its usefulness will increase – if we hear from you also. Please comment on the blog entries. Let us know about developments we missed or implications of our discussions that we did not consider.

We look forward to the conversation.