Environmentalists Relieved as Critics Slam ‘Muddled’ SCOTUS Term
Bloomberg Law (by Ellen M. Gilmer)
June 22, 2021
https://news.bloomberglaw.com/environment-and-energy/environmentalists-relieved…

The U.S. Supreme Court’s latest term, wrapping up this month, went surprisingly well for environmental lawyers who feared cases on the docket could prove disastrous to their cause. Many advocates prepared for a barrage of bad news from the conservative-leaning bench as the court weighed major Clean Water Act, Superfund, and pipeline questions, plus non-environment cases that could cause collateral damage. Instead, they got a slate of decisions they could live with—even some worth celebrating.

Berta Cáceres’ Murder Shocked the World in 2016, But the Killing of Environmental Activists Continues
Inside Climate News (by Katie Livingstone)
August 24, 2021
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/24082021/berta-caceres-murder-environmental-…

When the people of Rio Blanco first saw workers bringing heavy construction machinery into their village along the sacred Gualcarque River in Honduras 15 years ago, they went to Berta Isabel Cáceres for help. Cáceres, an activist representing the Lenca tribe who co-founded the National Council of Popular and Indigenous Organizations of Honduras (COPINH), would go on for a decade leading a campaign to stop the Agua Zarca Dam, a joint venture between a Chinese dam developer, the largest in the world, and a Honduran company, Desarrollos Energeticos SA (Desa). . . .

Big changes afoot for US chemical risk evaluations
Chemical & Engineering News (by Britt E. Erickson)
July 8, 2021
https://cen.acs.org/policy/chemical-regulation/Big-changes-afoot-US-chemical/99…

Facing lawsuits and criticism from scientists, environmental groups, and the chemical industry, the US Environmental Protection Agency is overhauling its approach for evaluating risks associated with high-priority chemicals that are already on the market.

EJ Expert Gets Nod for Superfund Office
Politico Morning Energy (by Matthew Choi)
June 14, 2021
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/morning-energy/2021/06/14/g-7s-climate-tal…

The White House has nominated Carlton Waterhouse to run EPA’s Office of Land and Emergency Management, which oversees the expansive Superfund program and other waste issues. Waterhouse, who has been the top political appointee at OLEM since January, first joined EPA after graduating from Penn State and Howard University Law School in the 1990s. More recently, he's taught law at Howard and joined the board of the Environmental Law Institute.

How Biden’s EPA waste office pick could bolster equity goals
E&E (by E.A. Crunden)
August 2, 2021
https://www.eenews.net/articles/how-bidens-epa-waste-office-pick-could-bolster-…

EPA’s waste office might soon be run by a law professor whose background could prove key in addressing the Biden administration’s environmental justice goals along with hot-button concerns like so-called forever chemicals. Carlton Waterhouse, whose nomination to oversee the Office of Land and Emergency Management is being taken up by a Senate committee this week, would bring a vital perspective to the job, advocates say . . . .

Land use climate bubbles are popping up all over the nation at an alarming rate, and they could very well lead to an economic crisis that will be more damaging than that of the housing bubble of 2008. What can we do to respond? Land Use Law expert John Nolon describes how the local land use legal system can leverage state and federal assistance to reduce per capita carbon emissions as an important and now recognized component of global efforts to manage climate change. The podcast is being released in tandem with CNN’s Call to Earth Day, an initiative to share the stories of those dedicated to conservation, environmentalism, and sustainability. 
As investor demand for climate and other environmental, social, and governance (ESG) products soars, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has formed a climate and ESG task force and taken other steps. 

In this episode, Justin Savage, a Partner at Sidley Austin LLP, talks with Kelly Gibson, Director of the SEC’s Philadelphia Regional Office who also leads the Climate and ESG Task Force within the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, and Ranah Esmaili, a partner at Sidley who recently joined the firm from the SEC’s Asset Management Unit within the Division of Enforcement. The panel discusses a wide range of SEC developments, including potential rulemaking, risk alerts, investor bulletins, and the task force. 
Environmental Justice has gained new momentum in recent years, amplified by a global focus on social justice, climate, and equity. Shortly after taking office, President Biden released Executive Order 14008, Tackling the Climate Crises at Home and Abroad. The Executive Order includes a new initiative, Justice40, which states that 40% of the overall benefits from specific federal investments—including energy efficiency, clean energy, clean water infrastructure, and training and workforce development—will be directed toward disadvantaged communities. In this episode, Gwendolyn Keyes Fleming, a partner at Van Ness Feldman, and Mustafa Santiago Ali, Vice President of Environmental Justice, Climate, and Community Revitalization for the National Wildlife Federation, discuss the Justice40 initiative. This episode is part of the Groundtruth series created in partnership with Beveridge & Diamond, one of the nation’s leading environmental law firms. 
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