Please enjoy this collection of helpful and informative articles on various aspects of environmental law as written by our esteemed attorneys.
New state regulations promulgated in 2005 are fully in effect transforming how the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife (DFW) and its Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program (NHESP) log, map, review, and permit work affecting endangered species and their “priority habitat.”
INTRODUCTION
You will make many decisions during your next emergency. Either you will make them according to plan or you will make them ad hoc, and hope for the best.
I. Evolution of Ecosystem Management
Ecosystem management is fast becoming a subject of environmental law. More than a catch phrase, ecosystem management is a concept which underlies several decades of scientific study and more recent policy thrusts toward such things as sustainable development, smart growth, sprawl control, watershed management, wetland restoration, wildlife conservation, life-cycle analysis, multi-media environmental protection, and efforts to enhance biodiversity.
Amid all the laws and regulations on environmental protection and worker safety, what is the responsible industry to do?
One of our clients, Typical Industry, just says, "Let's deal with trouble as it comes." This client stumbles from crisis to crisis, always learning after the fact that some permit was supposed to have been obtained, some report prepared, some document filed, some notice published, some approval sought or some question answered.
INTRODUCTION
A good rule to follow about needing attorneys is: Don't!" Nevertheless, emergency managers should understand concepts of liability in order to avoid lawsuits, and, if that is not possible, to win lawsuits. Especially important is the limited immunity from suit enjoyed by some public officials making some types of decisions. This notion is what is left of the concept called "sovereign immunity".
INTRODUCTION
Environmental law in the United States is a body of legislation, traditional principles, agency regulations, and contract and treaty obligations governing business, government, and private activities affecting public health and the natural environment.