Projects
The Sabin Center currently focuses its work within four programmatic areas: Cross-cutting Issues & Initiatives, Energy Law, Environmental & Land Use Law, and International & Foreign Law. The Center’s thought leadership and direct engagement operate at the international, national, state and local levels.
Cross-cutting Issues & Initiatives
Climate change cuts across law and policy domains, engaging governments, courts, businesses, scientists and others in multiple and overlapping ways. Our current cross-cutting efforts track and assess climate litigation, provide legal pathways to deep decarbonization, engage with cities to find legal answers to questions raised by policy innovations, provide pro bono legal representation to supporters of utility-scale renewable energy projects, advance research on legal issues associated with carbon management and negative emissions technologies, explore how legal tools can be used to drive recognition of climate risk and resilience by corporate actors and others, as well as to advance climate and environmental justice.
Climate Change Litigation
The Sabin Center tracks and analyzes U.S. and global climate change litigation and submits amicus briefs in certain cases.
Talks
• Michael Gerrard gave numerous virtual and in-person talks about climate litigation, including to the Committee on Science, Technology, and Law of the National Academies of Sciences; at an American Inns of Court dinner in Trenton, New Jersey; on a New York State Bar Association webinar on “Climate Change Litigation After Milieudefensie v. Royal Dutch Shell”; at a New York Judicial Institute program on “Climate Science and Climate Litigation”; and to the British Institute of
International and Comparative Law conference. Michael also spoke about global climate litigation to a joint meeting of the judges of the Inter-American, European and African courts of human rights, held in San Jose, Costa Rica.
• Michael Burger and Martin Lockman traveled to London to participate in a conference and roundtable on climate litigation risk as part of the Sabin Center’s ongoing collaboration with the WTW Research Network.
• Michael Burger spoke on a webinar titled “Climate Litigation: This Time It’s Personal,” organized by the University of Sorbonne (Paris 1), Science Po, IDDRI, and the Institut des Sciences Juridique & Philosophique de la Sorbonne.
• Maria Antonia Tigre gave numerous talks on global climate change litigation, including at workshops on “Climate Law and Litigation” at the University of Graz; on “Climate Change Litigation in the Global South” at the University of Singapore; on “Comparative Enforcement of International Law” at Rutgers Center for Transnational Law; and on “Just Transition Litigation in Latin America” at the Institute Ayara. Maria Antonia also presented at a New York State Bar Association conference on “Climate Change Litigation After Milieudefensie v. Royal Dutch Shell”; at the American Society of International Law’s 2023 Annual Meeting on the future of Latin
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American International Law; and at Charleston Law Review Annual Conference 2023 on “Global Climate Litigation: The Time is Ripe for an Advisory Opinion on Climate Change.”
Engagement
• Michael Burger, Martin Lockman, Andrea Nishi, and Amy Turner filed an amicus brief in the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals on behalf of the National League of Cities (NLC) and the U.S. Conference of Mayors, in opposition to a challenge to EPA’s vehicle GHG emissions standards that was filed by a coalition of State Attorneys General and fossil fuel industry groups, the Texas v. EPA case.
Publications
• Maria Antonia Tigre, Lorena Zenteno, Marlies Hesselman, Natalia Urzola, Pedro Cisterna-Gaete, Riccardo Luporini, Just Transition Litigation in Latin America: An Initial Categorization of Climate Litigation Cases Amid the Energy Transition (January 2023).
• Maria Antonia Tigre, Natalia Urzola & Alexandra Goodman, Climate Litigation in Latin America: Is the region quietly leading a regional revolution?, 14(1) J. Hum. Rts. & Envt. 67–93 (2023).
• Montana Lawsuit Confronts States’ Responsibility for Climate Change, op-ed by Michael Burger, Brennan Center for Justice (May 22, 2023).
Peer Review Network of Global Climate Litigation
The Sabin Center’s Peer Review Network of Global Climate Litigation includes like-minded scholars and practitioners who help to maintain the Sabin Center’s Global Climate Litigation database. The participants share updates on climate litigation in their jurisdictions and
discuss common topics of interest, leading to further collaborations and research expansions. The Network currently includes 118 rapporteurs covering 116 jurisdictions (19 countries in Africa, 15 in the Americas, 32 in Europe, 28 in Asia and the Pacific, 3 in the Middle East, and 19 international or regional courts, tribunals, quasijudicial bodies, or other adjudicatory bodies, including special procedures of the United Nations and arbitration tribunals).
Publications
• Navigating the Intersection of Climate Change and the Law of the Sea: Exploring the ITLOS Advisory Opinion’s Substantive Content, by Maria José Alarcon and Maria Antonia Tigre.
• The ICJ’s Advisory Opinion on Climate Change: What Happens Now?, by Maria Antonia Tigre and Jorge Alejandro Carrillo Banuelos.
• A Request for an Advisory Opinion at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights: Initial Reactions, by Maria Antonia Tigre, Natalia Urzola and Juan Sebastian Castellanos.
Legal Pathways to Deep Decarbonization (LPDD)
The Sabin Center and Widener University’s Environmental Law & Sustainability Center maintain the Model Laws for Deep Decarbonization in the United States website, which provides policy makers at the federal, state and local levels with legal tools needed to transition away from fossil fuels. More than forty pro bono law firms are at work drafting additional model laws as part of this project. The Sabin Center is cooperating with legal scholars in Brazil and Australia who are undertaking similar projects in those countries.
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• The LPDD project has, to date, authored over seventy model laws applicable at the state, local, and federal levels addressing the different recommendations in the 2019 text, Legal Pathways to Deep Decarbonization in the United States. Most recently, the project has published a model state law on studying the workforce needs of a decarbonizing economy and a model federal law on amending the value for which coal projects may lease federal land to represent its true value. Earlier this year, the LPDD project published eight model laws on amending the federal permitting process for renewable energy. The LPDD project’s outreach team continues to engage state, local, and federal policymakers to educate them about the resources available at our website.
Carbon Management and Negative Emissions
Many scientists agree that reducing or even eliminating future greenhouse gas emissions will not, by itself, be sufficient to avoid catastrophic climate change. In addition, it will also be necessary to remove previously emitted greenhouse gases from the atmosphere, and store or utilize them in some way. This can be done using a range of carbon management and negative emission technologies.The Sabin Center conducts research on legal issues associated with the development and use of carbon management and negative emissions technologies.
Talks
• Romany Webb was a guest at Monaco Ocean Week, where she participated in the inaugural legal roundtable hosted by the Fondation Prince Albert II de Monaco, and presented on “The Adaptation of International and Domestic Law to Advance Ocean-Based Carbon
Dioxide Removal.” Romany also traveled to Miami to attend the “Aspen Ideas: Climate” conference, where she participated in two workshops on “Scaling Terrestrial CDR” and “Developing a Code of Conduct for Ocean CDR.”
• Romany gave numerous other in-person and virtual talks on legal issues relating to carbon management and negative emissions technologies, including at a briefing for Congressional staffers hosted by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; at Capitol Hill Ocean Week; at a policy workshop hosted by the Carbon Business Council; at an expert roundtable hosted by Forward 31 and the House of Beautiful Business; on a webinar on “Model Legislation to Advance Ocean CDR Research” hosted by Ocean Visions; and as part of a panel discussion on “Carbon Capture and Sequestration: State Initiatives, State Primacy, and Class VI Permitting” co-hosted by the Sabin Center and Arnold & Porter.
• Carolina Arlota spoke on a webinar titled “COP 27: Recent Developments and Implications for the Upcoming Year”
hosted by the Climate Change, Sustainable Development and Ecosystems Committee of the American Bar Association Section of Environment, Energy, and Resources. Carolina also chaired and moderated a number of panels, including at the 2023 Society for Benefit Analysis Conference at George Washington University, and a Law and Development panel of the Gujarat National Law University (GNLU) Center for Law and Economic Analysis of Law, Governance and Public Policy.
• Korey Silverman-Roati spoke on the topic of “Responsible Carbon Dioxide Removal Research Governance in Practice,” at the Ocean Visions Biennial Summit in Atlanta.
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Engagement
• Romany Webb was appointed to several boards and committees, including the review panel for the National Ocean Partnership Program’s mCDR research competition; a GEOMAR led project developing a “Guide to Best Practices in Ocean Alkalinity Enhancement Research”; and a panel charged with updating the American Geophysical Union’s Position Statement on Climate Intervention. The updated Position Statement was formally adopted by the American Geophysical Union board in April 2023. Romany also served on a steering committee for the Blue Carbon Law Symposium, helping to organize the event, which was held at the University of Georgia in May 2023.
• Korey Silverman-Roati continued to serve on the Scientific Advisory Board of the Germany CDRMare research group and attended the group’s 2nd Annual General Assembly in Stralsund, Germany.
• Korey also presented on the legal framework for ocean carbon dioxide removal to a monthly meeting of the Tribal Carbon Dioxide Removal Governance Working Group. He is also serving on the working group in an advisory role.
Publications
• The book, Ocean Carbon Dioxide Removal for Climate Mitigation: The Legal Framework, co-edited by Romany M. Webb, Korey Silverman-Roati, and Michael B. Gerrard was published by Edward Elgar Publishing. The book discusses the laws governing research into, and deployment of, various ocean CDR techniques at the international level and domestically in seven countries throughout Asia, Europe, and North America.
• Developing Model Federal Legislation to Advance Safe and Responsible Ocean Carbon Dioxide Removal Research in the United States, by Romany M. Webb and Korey Silverman-Roati (March 2023).
• Model Federal Legislation for Safe and Responsible Ocean Carbon Dioxide Removal Research (2-page brief), by Romany M. Webb and Korey SilvermanRoati (March 2023).
• Congress should step in to advance ocean climate solutions, op-ed by Korey Silverman-Roati and Romany Webb, The Hill (March 27, 2023).
• Harnessing the Ocean’s Power to Combat the Climate Crisis, Tiffany Challe-Campiz, The State of the Planet (April 21, 2023).
United States Climate Law & Policy
The Sabin Center is increasingly participating in activities related to advancing research and engagement within the US climate law and policy space.
Talks
• Michael Gerrard hosted U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse in a series of talks and meetings at Columbia Law School. Senator White house was also a guest judge for the Law School’s environmental law moot court team.
• Romany Webb presented on the Inflation Reduction Act at a meeting of the State Policy Network.
• The Sabin Center co-hosted, with the Environmental Defense Fund, a webinar on “Tracking the Inflation Reduction Act: Benefits to Date from America’s Biggest Climate Investment.” Romany Webb gave opening remarks and Amy Turner participated in a panel discussion as part of the webinar.
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Engagement
• The Sabin Center, together with the Environmental Defense Fund, launched the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) tracker, a free online resource that catalogues all climate-related provisions in the IRA and tracks actions by federal agencies to implement the law.
Cities Climate Law Initiative
The Cities Climate Law Initiative helps U.S. cities achieve their climate mitigation commitments by addressing critical gaps or obstacles to advancing implementation.
Talks
• Amy Turner spoke at the National League of Cities Congressional Cities Conference; on an American College of Environmental Lawyers webinar on “Climate Change and Funds Available for Resilience Projects under the IRA” and at the Fordham Urban Law Journal’s symposium “Building a Greener Future Through Urban Sustainability.”
Engagement
• The Center filed an amicus brief on behalf of the League of Cities, the League of California Cities, and California State Association of Counties, in California Restaurant Ass’n v. Berkeley.
• Following the invalidation of Berkeley, California’s “natural gas ban” by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, Amy Turner has advised dozens of local governments and many more advocates on the implications of the case and on legal pathways for new building electrification given the changed legal landscape. She also published an analysis of the case and has been widely cited in press articles about the case.
• Amy has been serving on the New York City Sustainability Advisory Board, the advisory body from which the mayoral administration solicits guidance on its quadrennial PlaNYC strategic plan (issued April 2023).
Publications
• Michael Burger and Amy Turner’s book Urban Climate Law has become available for pre-order from Columbia University Press. The book examines the key issues surrounding climate mitigation policies across the buildings, transportation, waste, and energy sectors, with an emphasis on equitable local climate law and policy.
Renewable Energy Legal Defense Initiative (RELDI)
RELDI provides pro bono legal representation, and where appropriate works with partnering law firms to do so, to community groups and local residents who support renewable energy development in their communities.
Talks
• Matthew Eisenson presented on “Offshore Wind Development and the National Environmental Policy Act” at the annual Marine Law Symposium at Roger Williams University School of Law and participated in a webinar on “The State of the Climate Change Fight in New York and Beyond” hosted by the American Constitutional Society, New York Lawyer Chapter.
Engagement
• Matthew Eisenson and Michael Gerrard, together with local counsel, filed a petition to intervene in an Ohio Power Siting Board proceeding on behalf of a community member who supports the proposed Oak Run Solar Project. If approved, the project would be one of the most ambitious ever built, with 800
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megawatts (MW) of generation capacity, 300 MW of battery storage capacity, and 2,000 acres of mixed use solar and farming land (i.e. agrivoltaics). The motion to intervene was granted, and RELDI filed testimony in support of the project.
Publications
• Hillary Aidun, Jacob Elkin, & Matthew Eisenson et al., Opposition to Renewable Energy Facilities in the United States (May 2023 Edition).
Climate Law & Finance
As the consequences of climate change become more visible with each passing year, the Sabin Center explores how legal tools can be used to ensure that climate-related financial risks are accounted for in policy and regulation at multiple scales of governance. Our transdisciplinary focus on the intersection of climate, law, and finance also seeks to support the alignment of business and finance to the energy transition, and to embed resiliency measures across all sectors of the economy.
Talks
• Ilmi Granoff guest lectured at The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania on the history of climaterelated financial risk, and its oversight and regulation as well as on how a public invest-led approach unlocks the political economy of climate policy; he provided a keynote speech at a dinner hosted by the Institute of Management Accountants and ClimateArc on climate risk data gaps; he also presented at the CFA Institute’s “Climate Risk and Return” conference; to a class at Boston University Law School and for the Environmental Law Society of Columbia Law School, respectively, on the history and role of public financial institutions in fighting climate change.
Engagement
• Ilmi Granoff was appointed to the Climate-related Financial Risk Advisory Committee of the US Federal Government’s Financial Risk Oversight Counsel, and participated in its inaugural meeting on March 7.
Publications
• The Tragedy of the Financial Horizon is Closer than You Think, by Ilmi Granoff, May 4, 2023.
Initiative on Climate Risk and Resilience Law (ICRRL)
ICRRL is a joint initiative of the Sabin Center, Environmental Defense Fund, the Institute for Policy Integrity at New York University School of Law, and Vanderbilt Law School.The initiative aims to drive legal solutions that address societal and economic risks from climate change and to improve climate resilience in the electricity sector, and through financial regulation and risk management. The Sabin Center undertakes individual and joint actions related to ICRRL.
Talks
• Romany Webb presented on “Climate Risk and the Law” at The Wharton School at The University of Pennsylvania.
Engagement
• In January, the Sabin Center, together with the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, launched an Antitrust and Sustainability Landscape Analysis which aims to map the broad landscape of where antitrust and sustainability issues intersect, including industry boycotts, competitor collaborations, and mergers, and the ways in which competition policy may facilitate or undermine sustainability goals.
• The Sabin Center submitted comments on the Federal Acquisition Regulatory
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Council’s (FAR Council) Proposed Rule on the Disclosure of GHG emissions and Climate-Related Financial Risk.
• The Sabin Center, together with Environmental Defense Fund, submitted comments on the FAR Council’s Proposed Rule on the Disclosure of GHG emissions and Climate-Related Financial Risk.
• The Sabin Center submitted comments on the New York Department of Financial Services’ Proposed Guidance for New York State Regulated Banking and Mortgage Institutions Relating to Management of Material Financial Risks from Climate Change.
• The Sabin Center submitted comments, jointly with the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment, on EPA’s Request for Information on its Low Emissions Electricity Program & GHG Corporate Reporting.
Publications
• Global Consensus is Emerging on Corporate Scope 3 Disclosures. Will the SEC Lead or Lag? by Cynthia Hanawalt
• Reckoning with risk: Recent Developments in climate and U.S. financial regulation, by Dyan Garcia
Environmental Justice
Climate change has made clear that diversity increases the power of potential solutions and the resilience to adverse impacts – for ecosystems, social systems, economic systems and their various hybrids and combinations. The Sabin Center is committed to developing content and engaging in environmental issues faced by vulnerable communities.
Engagement
• Andrea Nishi worked with the Energy Bar Association, Center on Global Energy Policy, Dr. Diana Hernández of the Mailman School of Public Health, and a team of student volunteers on a research initiative exploring legal solutions to energy insecurity in the United States and Canada.
• Andrea Nishi worked with WE ACT for Environmental Justice on a project to develop model legislation related to environmental justice, cumulative impacts analysis, and permit renewals for polluting facilities.
Environmental & Land Use Law
Decreasing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing resilience to climate impacts involve use of existing environmental, natural resource, and land use laws. They also demand creation of new approaches. Our current efforts focus on federal, state, and local laws and regulations related to air pollution; environmental impact assessment; public lands management; and zoning and land use controls.
Talks
• Michael Gerrard spoke about the “Green Amendment” to the New York State Constitution to the annual Environmental Law Year in Review program at the New York City Bar Association.
• Michael Gerrard chaired the climate change panel at the American Law Institute’s annual Environmental Law conference in Arlington,Virginia.
Engagement
• The Sabin Center submitted comments on the Council on Environmental Quality’s Interim Guidance on Consideration of Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Climate Change in National Environmental Policy Act reviews.
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Publications
• Michael B. Gerrard and Edward McTiernan, New York Adopts Nation’s Strongest Environmental Justice Law, New York Law Journal (May 10, 2023).
• Michael B. Gerrard and Edward McTiernan, New York’s Green Amendment: The First Decisions, New York Law Journal (March 8, 2023).
• Michael B. Gerrard, Waste and Chemical Management in a 4°C World, 53 Envtl. L. Rep. 10114 (2023).
Energy Law
The Sabin Center seeks to advance the decarbonization of the energy sector and to encourage a more rational accounting of climate change-related impacts of energy use in the U.S. and elsewhere. Our current efforts focus on federal, state, and local laws and regulations related to clean energy development and integration, public utility regulation, and the extraction, transport, and consumption of fossil fuels.
Talks
• Michael Gerrard spoke about permitting reform at an American Council of Engineering Companies conference; guest taught a seminar on Transactions in Emerging Energy Industries; presented on the contradictions in the Biden Administration’s energy policies at the Columbia Energy Symposium; spoke on a U.S. Climate Alliance webinar on “Perspectives on EPA’s New Power Plant Rules”; and gave a keynote address on “Energy Transition Policies in the U.S.: Regulatory and Legal Implications” to Governanca Energetica e Politicas Publicas conference of Presbyterian University Mackenzie, Sao Paulo, Brazil.
• Martin Lockman spoke about “Externalities & Property Rights in Renewable Energy Development” at the West Virginia University Law Review’s Symposium Lecture Series 2023. Martin also spoke about “Ethical Issues in the Renewable Energy Transition” at a panel discussion at the South Texas College of Law 29th Annual Ethics Symposium.
Engagement
• The Sabin Center and Environmental Defense Fund co-hosted a meeting of the Forum on Climate Risk in the Electricity Sector. The Forum brings together legal academics and representatives of advocacy organizations working to advance consideration of climate risk in regulatory proceedings before state energy agencies. Discussions at the meeting focused on how energy efficiency can be simultaneously used to advance climate resilience and energy affordability goals.
• The Sabin Center co-hosted, with Energy Innovation, the International Regulatory Futures Forum. The Forum, which is now in its 7th year, brings together top energy regulators from the U.S., European, and Australia to discuss emerging issues in energy system decarbonization.
• The Sabin Center submitted comments on the draft environmental impact statement for the Empire Offshore Wind project.
• The Sabin Center submitted comments on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s notice of proposed rulemaking to revise the agency’s existing regulations on the permitting of interstate transmission facilities.
• The Sabin Center submitted comments on the Fifth National Climate Assessment, addressing issues related to the siting of large-scale renewable energy facilities (among other things).
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Publications
• Jack Arnold, Martin Lockman, Perrine Toledano, Martin Dietrich Brauch, Shraman Sen & Michael Burger, Transferred Emissions are Still Emissions: Why Fossil Fuel Asset Sales Need Enhanced Transparency and Carbon Accounting (May 2023).
International & Foreign Law
Climate change is a global problem that demands a global response. The Sabin Center provides legal support for and participates in international efforts to address the causes and effects of climate change. We also track how foreign jurisdictions are addressing climate change through legal reforms and litigation.
Human Rights and Climate Change
Climate change poses a very real threat to the enjoyment of human rights: sea level rise, heat waves, floods, drought, and other effects can cause death and injury, displace people from their homes, undermine food and water security, and otherwise interfere with the lives, health, and well-being of millions of people. The Sabin Center’s research explores how international human rights law can be used to enhance mitigation ambition and protect people from these effects.
Talks
• Michael Gerrard spoke about international adjudication and climate change loss and damage at the Human Rights Workshop Series at Yale Law School.
• Maria Antonia Tigre spoke at numerous events on human rights and climate change, including at Georgetown University and the University of Copenhagen.
Engagement
• Maria Antonia Tigre and Carolina Arlota participated in an expert seminar on “Identifying Enabling Conditions for the Recognition and Implementation of the Right to a Clean, Healthy and Sustainable Environment at National Level,” hosted by the Geneva Academy.
Publications
• Katelyn Horne, Maria Antonia Tigre, and Michael B. Gerrard, Status Report on Principles of International and Human Rights Law (April 2023).
Threatened Island Nations
Climate change poses a substantial risk to many small island nations. These nations may be partially or completely submerged by rising sea levels in the coming decades, and are also vulnerable to other disruptions caused by increasing temperatures and changing precipitation patterns. We have worked with threatened island nations since 2009 to develop legal strategies to address these problems.
Talks
• Michael Gerrard gave a number of presentations on climate change impacts on small island states, including at a workshop held by the United Nations Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs; at a workshop on “Sea-Level Rise—Legal Implications for Statehood,” held by the Global Centre for Climate Mobility at the United Nations Operations Support Office in New York; on a webinar hosted by United Nations Community of Practice on Climate Security; and as part of the CLS Admitted Students Program.
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Events
From January to June 2023, the Sabin Center sponsored, co-sponsored and participated in numerous online events and conferences. Here are some highlights:
• Key Environmental Issues in U.S. EPA Region 2: The Sabin Center hosted its biennial conference, which examined key environmental issues in the Environmental Protection Agency Region 2 area, which includes New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands. Michael Gerrard delivered opening remarks.
• Tracking the Inflation Reduction Act: Benefits to Date from America: The Sabin Center and Environmental Defense Fund co-hosted a webinar discussing progress to date and next steps for implementing the Inflation Reduction Act.
Below are a series of events as part of the Peer Review Network of Global Climate Litigation’s webinar series:
• Advisory Opinions on Climate Change: An Overview of a Quarter of Simultaneous Requests: The Sabin Center hosted a webinar on the “quartet of initiatives” to request advisory opinions on climate change from various judicial bodies in three panels.
• The Climate Docket at the European Court of Human Rights: The Sabin Center hosted a half-day conference, which provided an overview of the “Climate Docket” of the European Court of Human Rights, and featured a detailed discussion of the three cases heard by the Court at the end of March 2023.
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• Climate Justice for Children and Future Generations: Current Trends in Climate Change Litigation and Children’s Rights Law: The Sabin Center hosted a webinar on youth-led climate litigation in different jurisdictions, with a focus on understanding the legal, political, and social challenges to a successful outcome.
Other events
• Just Transition Litigation in Latin America: Initial Lessons: The Sabin Center hosted a webinar to present the findings of a recent report, Just Transition Litigation in Latin America: An Initial Categorization of Climate Litigation Cases Amid the Energy Transition.
• The Sabin Center and the Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment (CCSI) co-hosted a webinar; “Does Antitrust Help or Hinder Sustainability?,” which explored how antitrust enforcers, lawyers, and researchers can collaborate to support planetary goals while providing clarity for private-sector actors.
• The Sabin Center, along with CCSI, IFEP, CSIL, and Ci3 co-sponsored a talk by Christine Laskaridis on “Twin Crisis: Sovereign Debt and Climate,” which covered how growing debt crises and the climate emergency are raising significant problems with respect to how mitigation and adaptation will be paid for, among other topics.
• The Sabin Center, together with Energy Innovation, co-hosted a panel discussion on “Electricity System Decarbonization: Where we Stand and the Challenges Ahead,” at which top energy regulator around the world shared their experiences with moving from fossil fuel to renewable energy systems.
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Publications
The Sabin Center produces journal articles, white papers, surveys and other legal resources, and its members edit and co-author books with other climate law and energy experts from around the globe. Our website at climate.law.columbia.edu contains landing pages for each of our program areas, which include links to relevant projects, publications, and other resources. In addition, the Center publishes the Climate Law Blog and maintains a growing presence on social media, including on Twitter, LinkedIn, Mastodon, and Facebook as well as a YouTube channel.
Books
• Urban Climate Law, by Amy Turner and Michael Burger (forthcoming Oct. 2023 Columbia University Press; link to pre-order is available here)
• Global Climate Change and U.S. Law, 3rd ed., edited by Michael B. Gerrard, Jody Freeman, and Michael Burger (ABA, 2023)
Law Journal Articles
• Michael B. Gerrard and Edward McTiernan, New York Adopts Nation’s Strongest Environmental Justice Law, New York Law Journal (May 10, 2023)
• Michael B. Gerrard and Edward McTiernan, New York’s Green Amendment: The First Decisions, New York Law Journal (March 8, 2023)
• Michael B. Gerrard, Waste and Chemical Management in a 4°C World, 53 Envtl. L. Rep. 10114 (2023)
Sabin Center White Papers
• Hillary Aidun, Jacob Elkin & Matthew Eisenson et al., Opposition to Renewable Energy Facilities in the United States (May 2023 Edition)
• Katelyn Horne, Maria Antonia Tigre, and Michael B. Gerrard, Status Report on Principles of International and Human Rights Law (April 2023)
• Ocean Carbon Dioxide Removal for Climate Mitigation: The Legal Framework, by Romany M. Webb, Korey SilvermanRoati, and Michael B. Gerrard (eds) (Edward Elgar Publishing, 2023)
• Maria Antonia Tigre, Natalia Urzola & Alexandra Goodman, Climate Litigation in Latin America: Is the region quietly leading a regional revolution?, 14(1) J. Hum. Rts. & Envt. 67–93 (2023)
• Amy Turner, Success Will Depend on Implementation, Environmental Law Forum (Mar./Apr. 2023)
• Martin Lockman, Fencing the Wind: Property Rights in Renewable Energy, W.V. L. REV. (January 2023)
• Jack Arnold, Martin Lockman, Perrine Toledano, Martin Dietrich Brauch, Shraman Sen & Michael Burger, Transferred Emissions are Still Emissions: Why Fossil Fuel Asset Sales Need Enhanced Transparency and Carbon Accounting (May 2023)
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• Romany M. Webb and Korey SilvermanRoati, Developing Model Federal Legislation to Advance Safe and Responsible Ocean Carbon Dioxide Removal Research in the United States (March 2023)
Highlights from the Climate Law Blog
• Recent developments on carbon dioxide removals: Increasing policy support but governance issues remain, by Carolina Arlota and Korey Silverman-Roati
• Administrative Interpretation of the CLCPA, by Andrea Nishi
• Ninth Circuit Holds Berkeley’s Gas Ban Preempted by U.S. Energy Policy & Conservation Act, by Amy Turner
• The Fiduciary Duty of Directors to Manage Climate Risk: An expansion of corporate liability through litigation?, by Maria Antonia Tigre and Cynthia Hanawalt
• Romany M. Webb and Korey SilvermanRoati, Model Federal Legislation for Safe and Responsible Ocean Carbon Dioxide Removal Research (2-page brief) (March 2023)
• New Details about the Inflation Reduction Act’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund & Takeaways for Cities, by Amy Turner
• Cities, counties, and states score major procedural win in climate liability suits against fossil fuel companies, by Korey Silverman-Roati
• Rethinking the Willow Project: Did BLM have Other Options?, by Romany M. Webb
• Beyond troubled waters: Unprecedented cross-border transportation and injection of carbon dioxide (CO2) for offshore storage shows promise, by Carolina Arlota
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Online Resources
• Inflation Reduction Act Tracker
The Sabin Center, together with Environmental Defense Fund, launched the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) tracker, a free online resource that catalogs the climate-related provisions in the IRA and tracks actions by federal agencies to implement the law.
• New York City Climate Law Tracker
The New York City Climate Law Tracker monitors New York City’s progress in implementing the Climate Mobilization Act, a suite of local laws that were enacted in 2019. The most prominent of these is Local Law 97, which places limits on the amount of greenhouse gases that large buildings may emit.
• CLCPA Scoping Plan Tracker
The Sabin Center launched a database tracking New York State’s implementation of the Climate Action Council’s Scoping Plan recommendations to meet the goals and requirements of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act.
• New York State Climate Law Tracker
The New York State Climate Law Tracker monitors New York’s progress in implementing its path-breaking Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act, Environmental Justice Law, Community Risk and Resiliency Act, and Accelerated Renewable Energy Growth and Community Benefit Act.
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• Climate Attribution Database
The Climate Attribution Database, developed in collaboration between the Sabin Center and Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, is a repository of scientific infomation relevant to climate litigation and policy-making. Climate attribution science plays a central role in climate litigation and policy-making. The science is central to legal debates on the causal links between human activities, global climate change, and impacts on human and natural systems.
• Climate Change Litigation Databases
The Center maintains U.S. and global climate litigation charts. (The US database is maintained in collaboration with Arnold & Porter.) To subscribe to the Center’s monthly update, contact: columbiaclimate@gmail.com
• Carbon Dioxide Removal Law Database
The Sabin Center and the Center on Global Energy Policy maintain the Carbon Dioxide Removal Law Database, an annotated bibliography of legal materials related to carbon dioxide removal and carbon sequestration and use.
• Climate Reregulation Tracker
The Sabin Center launched the Climate Reregulation Tracker to follow the Biden administration’s progress reinstating and expanding on climate policies that had been rolled back under the previous administration.
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• Climate Change Laws of the World
The Sabin Center and the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment have collaborated to create an online database of the laws, regulations, policy statements, and other directives issued by national governments, with links to the Sabin Center litigation charts.
• Silencing Science Tracker
The Silencing Science Tracker is a joint initiative of the Sabin Center and the Climate Science Legal Defense Fund. It tracks government attempts to restrict or prohibit scientific research, education or discussion, or the publication or use of scientific information, since the November 2016 election.
• Model Laws for Deep Decarbonization in the United States
The Model Laws for Deep Decarbonization in the United States website provides policy makers at the federal, state and local levels with the legal tools needed to transition away from fossil fuels. The website is based on the book, Legal Pathways to Deep Decarbonization in the United States, co-edited by Michael Gerrard and John C. Dernbach.
18 Winter/Spring 2023
Media Mentions and Interviews
Sabin Center experts were interviewed and/ or quoted directly or mentioned via one of the products produced by the Center in approximately 80 media and news items.
Highlights
• Climate Expert on Debt Ceiling Deal: “We Were Afraid it was Going to Be Worse,” CNN News
In this interview, Michael Gerrard discusses the debt ceiling deal, stating that while elements of it can go in the “wrong direction,” critical climate initiatives survived the fight.
• A Lawsuit Against Big Oil Gets Personal, The New York Times
In this article, Michael Burger weighs in on ClientEarth’s liability case against Shell’s board members.
• Hawaii Supreme Court Ruling Bolsters Rights-Based Climate Cases, Bloomberg Law
In this article, Maria Antonia Tigre weighs in on the significance of the Hawaii Supreme Court ruling stating that “just having that interpretation of the right to a safe climate within the rights for healthy environment and connected to other human rights, it’s usually significant.”
• What New York’s Natural Gas Ban Means for Other States, CBS NEWS
In this TV interview, Amy Turner discusses New York’s new building electrification law and what it means for cleaner and better buildings around the country.
• EPA’s Plan to ‘De-Carbonize’ Electricity, The Brian Lehrer Show, WNYC
In this podcast, Michael Burger shares insights on EPA’s proposed new rule for power plant greenhouse gas emissions.
• Supreme Court Unlocks Climate Cases by Rejecting Oil Industry Bid, E&E News
In this article, Korey Silverman-Roati comments on the implications of the Supreme Court’s decision to reject a batch of climate liability petitions from oil companies, on future litigation.
• Why 23 Dead Whales Have Washed Up on the East Coast Since December, The New York Times
In this article, Matthew Eisenson comments on the impacts of climate change on marine life.
• Natural Disasters, Boosted by Climate Change, Displaced Millions of People in U.S. in 2022, NBC News
In this article, Michael Gerrard comments on the number of displaced people as a result of natural disasters, exacerbated by climate change.
• An Activist Group is Spreading Misinformation to Stop Solar Projects in Rural America, NPR
In this article, Michael Burger comments on the movement initiated by local groups to spread misinformation to stop the development of solar projects.
• On Earth Day, Scientists Tell Us What 2050 Could Be
Like.
Their Answers Might Surprise You, USA Today
Romany Webb suggests that in order to pull more carbon out of the air and stabilize coastal systems, mangrove forests and seaside ecosystems have been restored.
A Summary of the Key Activities of the Sabin Center for Climate Change Law 19
