Publications Mix
A Life’s ValueA Life’s Value May Depend on the Agency, but It’s Rising

To protests from business and praise from unions, environmentalists and consumer groups, one agency after another has ratcheted up the price of life, justifying tougher — and more costly — standards...

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Water From Gas WellsRegulation Is Lax for Water From Gas Wells

...the relatively new drilling method — known as high-volume horizontal hydraulic fracturing, or hydrofracking — carries significant environmental risks.

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Frack Waste Water Deadly Journey: Bromides and ChlorinePa. drillers told to stop sending wastewater to treatment plants

The bromides themselves are not a public health risk - they account for a tiny part of the salty dissolved solids that create an unpleasant taste in water at elevated levels.  ...But bromides react with the chlorine disinfectants used by drinking water to form brominated trihalomethanes (THMs), a volatile organic compound.

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Auburn Sewer Use LawAuburn Sewer Use Law

Email correspondence between William M. Foster, Auburn, NY and Fracking Resource Guide.  The letter published in the Auburn Citizen on April 1, 2011 follows at the end of this post.

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Warriors of QiugangThe Warriors of Qiugang: 仇岗卫士 A Chinese Village Fights Back

For years, a chemical plant in the Chinese village of Qiugang had polluted the river, poisoned the drinking water, and fouled the air — until residents decided to take a stand. The Warriors of Qiugang, a Yale Environment 360 video co-produced by Ruby Yang and Thomas Lennon, tells the story of the villagers’ determined efforts to stop the pollution.

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U.S. Climate DenialHenry Waxman during HR 910
On March 15, 2011, Republicans in the House energy committee voted not once, not twice, but three times [all PDFs], against amendments recognizing that climate change is real, despite the broad scientific consensus that "climate change is happening and human beings are a major reason for it." They then unanimously voted [PDF] in favor of the Upton-Inhofe bill to repeal the EPA's scientific endangerment finding on greenhouse pollution.
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At the Center of the EarthOwning the Center of the Earth

How far below the earth’s surface do property rights extend? The conventional wisdom is that a landowner holds title to everything between the surface and the center of the earth. This article is the first legal scholarship to challenge the traditional view.

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Not Talk Falsely NowCornell University Law School - 2011 Energy Conference
The Cornell University Law School - 2011 Energy Conference (March 31-April 2, 2011) explored, among other topics, the legal issues associated with natural gas drilling and energy policy, different scientific perspectives on how clean and sustainable natural gas is, alternative clean energy sources, and the potential risks and benefits of shale gas development in Upstate New York.
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FracFocusFracFocus Chemical Disclosure Registry
Of all the lobbyists bringing their issues to Capitol Hill, the Groundwater Protection Council is one of the smaller players.  I have to wonder, reading the rankings on Open Secrets, "Lobbying Spending Database: Environment, 2009", why this groundwater organization spends less on its annual lobbying than "Fur Wraps the Hill" or the "Pittsburgh Parks Conservancy"?  Groundwater is a hot button national issue, affecting both the urban and agricultural sectors.
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Academic Round-UpAcademic Round-Up | American Electric Power Co., Inc. v. Connecticut
The Court heard oral argument in American Electric Power v. Connecticut on Tuesday.   The case raises questions about the role of the federal courts in addressing climate change.
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