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From Shale to Salt: Texas Supreme Court Applies Uniform Rule for Ownership of Subsurface Caverns

In a closely watched opinion issued on May 16, 2025, the Texas Supreme Court in Myers-Woodward, LLC v. Undergrounds Services Markham, LLC, — S.W.3d —, No. 22-0878, 2025 WL 1415892 (Tex. May 16, 2025) resolved a long-uncertain...more

States and Municipalities Advance Climate Change Lawsuits as Trump Administration Seeks to Block Them

Even as the Trump administration moves to block state and local climate liability efforts, states and municipalities continue to advance lawsuits seeking to hold fossil fuel companies liable for harms associated with climate...more

Federal Government Sues Four States Over Climate Superfund Laws and Climate Change Litigation

The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has filed a series of federal lawsuits against four states—New York, Vermont, Michigan and Hawaii—alleging that recent legislative and enforcement efforts to hold fossil fuel companies...more

State Climate Laws and Litigation Face Federal Pushback Under New Executive Order

On April 8, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14260, Protecting American Energy From State Overreach​. Framed as part of the Administration’s broader strategy of unleashing American energy, the Order directs...more

California SB 813 Proposes Landmark Safe Harbor for AI Development Through Certification

With SB 813, California introduces a first-in-the-nation framework that reduces regulatory uncertainty and encourages responsible AI innovation. In addition to fostering public-private cooperation over top-down mandates, the...more

The Battle Over Climate Superfund Laws: Legal Challenges in Vermont and New York

States are increasingly turning to “Climate Superfund” laws as a potential mechanism to offset the growing costs of climate-related disaster recovery and the construction of more climate change-resilient infrastructure. These...more

Breaking Ground: The Trump Administration Invokes Emergency Powers in New Executive Order to Boost U.S. Critical Mineral...

On March 20, 2025, the Trump administration invoked emergency powers in an Executive Order (EO) entitled Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production, aiming to accelerate domestic mineral mining and processing....more

Maryland Files PFAS Suit Against Downstream Manufacturer

Maryland has filed suit against W.L. Gore & Associates (Gore), a downstream user of PFAS-containing materials, alleging that its manufacturing processes contributed to PFAS contamination through its use of...more

Court Approves 60-Day Stays in Legal Battles over Biden-Era PFAS Regulations amid Administration Shift

In a move that signals potential policy shifts under the new administration, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit granted EPA’s requests for 60-day stays in two high-profile cases challenging...more

Beyond the Executive Orders: Legislative Proposals to Strengthen the U.S. Critical Minerals Supply Chain

Critical minerals are the backbone of modern technologies and national security, powering everything from advanced semiconductors and electric vehicle batteries to missile guidance systems and renewable energy infrastructure....more

Council on Environmental Quality Rescinds NEPA Regulations

Federal agencies are now responsible for their own National Environmental Policy Act procedures, creating uncertainty and opportunity for federal environmental reviews....more

Trump 2.0: National Energy Emergency Targets Fossil Fuel, Uranium and Critical Minerals Expansion and Infrastructure Overhaul

The executive order aims to expedite energy projects, boost domestic production, and strengthen U.S. energy independence through streamlined regulatory reforms. On January 20, 2025, President Trump issued the “Declaring a...more

AI Needs Critical Materials, Fast! But From Where?

Critical materials—the collective term for metals and minerals essential for all kinds of advanced technology and clean energy—are vital to the growth of artificial intelligence (AI), which has become pervasive in everyday...more

New York’s “Climate Superfund” Bill becomes Law, Part of a Trend

In a “paradigm shift in environmental liability,” some states are seeking to legislate financial responsibility on large coal and oil & gas companies for the public costs associated with strengthening infrastructure against...more

How Broad Is Too Broad? Supreme Court Considers Scope of NEPA

The U.S. Supreme Court is poised to address a circuit split over whether an agency doing an environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) must consider effects beyond its regulatory jurisdiction,...more

California Climate Disclosures Remain on Schedule

Governor Newsom signs amended law, abandoning prior bid to provide additional time for implementation. Despite efforts by California Governor Gavin Newsom to provide more time for businesses to comply with the new...more

Big Data Meets Big Green: Data Centers and Carbon Removal Compete for Zero-Emission Energy

Artificial intelligence, data centers, carbon removal and zero-emission power may sound like a winning line (plus the Free Space) on a 2024 Buzzword Bingo card. But the concepts have come into dramatic real-world tension as...more

The Dunes Sagebrush Lizard Saga Continues: FWS Lists the Species as Endangered, Draws Congressional Response

On May 20, 2024, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service published a final rule listing the dunes sagebrush lizard as endangered under the Endangered Species Act. The listing does not include a designation of critical habitat....more

Final Rules Ramping Up Endangered Species Act Regulations Now in Effect

The rules address the listing process for critical species and habitat designations, as well as protections for threatened species. In a reversal, the rules also revise the ESA Section 7 interagency consultation process...more

U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Rolls Out BGEPA General Permit, Streamlining Wind and Power Line Project Approvals

Beginning April 12, 2024, USFWS will offer a general permit application for incidental take of bald and golden eagles for wind energy and power line projects. The general permit option will provide an alternative to...more

DOI Aims to Modernize its “Inefficient and Inflexible” Type A Natural Resource Damages Assessment Regulations

The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) published a proposed rule aimed at modernizing and streamlining the “Type A” Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) regulations under the Comprehensive Environmental Response,...more

Confronting Regulatory Fluidity in the Post-Maui and Post-Sackett World of Water Regulation

Both regulators and the regulated community must remain alert to accommodate the constantly changing regulatory scheme created in the post-Sackett world. The application of Maui and Sackett in recent months confirms the...more

And Then There Were Three: Louisiana Granted Primacy over Class VI Wells

Louisiana is the third state granted authority to permit and regulate Class VI underground injection control (UIC) wells, marking a significant step forward for these projects. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)...more

Rulemaking to Modernize, Expand DOI’s “Type A” Natural Resource Damage Assessment Rules Expected Fall 2023

The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) anticipates proposing a new rule that would revise its “Type A” Natural Resource Damage Assessment (NRDA) regulations under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and...more

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