Environmental Law Committee Podcasts – Law Podcasts

Innovations in Climate Adaptation: Through the Lens of Cities 10/7/13
Climate change is placing increasing strain on the infrastructure and resources of cities around the world. Rising sea levels, increases in heat waves, and more frequent and intense weather events demand broad adaptation initiatives and new attention to long-term resilience. As home to more than half of the world’s population, cities are becoming the first responders to climate change and are taking a leadership role in addressing its impacts. This panel will discuss adaptation initiatives being implemented in cities around the world, and New York’s role within this global movement.

Download materials from the event here.

New York Environmental Year in Review 2/15/12
In this law podcast, leading practitioners and professors of New York environmental law will review the year’s most significant judicial, regulatory, and administrative developments. Featured topics will include the regulation of high volume hydraulic fracturing, new developments under the State Environmental Quality Review Act, events at DEC, and more.

Climate Change: What Is To Be Done? 5/12/10
Efforts to address climate change through international negotiation in Copenhagen and legislative action in Congress have encountered significant difficulties, but some remain hopeful that progress can still be made. Meanwhile, EPA is moving forward with several rulemakings that would regulate greenhouse gases under existing provisions of the Clean Air Act, and the courts have decided several climate change cases seeking injunctive relief and damages from greenhouse gas emitters. This program will examine whether there is a path toward sensible collective action on the international front, the shape of EPA regulation and Congressional deliberations, and the evolving role of the courts in addressing climate change matters.

Marcellus Shale: Shall we drill? 3/10/10
Proposals to drill for natural gas in the Marcellus Shale formation have generated controversy. The New York State DEC (NYSDEC) has received extensive comments on a draft environmental impact statement (EIS). Concerns have been raised that the draft EIS does not adequately address a number of issues, including surface and ground water pollution, cumulative impacts, alternatives, and potential impacts to New York City’s drinking water supply. Commenters also have questioned NYSDEC’s plan not to issue comprehensive regulations. Others have suggested that the draft EIS goes too far, will set the highest bar in the country for industry, and does not suffer from shortcomings alleged by certain commenters. This program will examine the issues from all of these perspectives.

Climate Change and Priorities in Buenos Aires and Latin America 4/9/08
Graciela Gerola, president of the Buenos Aires Department of Environmental Protection, and Carl-Axel Soderberg, both with the Association of Sanitary Engineering and Environmental Sciences, discuss the effect global warming will have in Latin America in general and Buenos Aires in particular. They prioritize the issues facing Buenos Aires in this law podcast.

Disclosure of Climate Risk in SEC filings 3/11/08
Global warming will have significant impacts on businesses, and in this podcast Anne Kelly, Director of Governance Programs at Ceres, discusses why companies should disclose climate risks in their SEC filings. More at http://www.nycbar.org/mp3/Petition-to-SEC-on-climate-risk.pdf
http://www.nycbar.org/mp3/ELR-News-&-Analysis-Feb-08-on-climate-dislosure.pdf

Controlling Carbon Emissions Through Cap and Trade or Tax Programs 11/13/07
a Sussman and Nancy Anderson explain the merits and disadvantages of controlling carbon emissions through a cap and trade programs or a carbon tax in this second interview in the City Bar’s podcast series on climate change. Recorded November 13th, 2007. More at http://www.nycbar.org/mp3/capandtradeorCO2tax11.pdf

Climate Change series kick-off interview with Michael Gerrard
Michael Gerrard of Arnold and Porter discusses the basics of climate change and what can be done to combat it. This is the first of this year’s series of interviews on climate change issues. Recorded November 1, 2007. More at http://www2.nycbar.org/mp3/CleanDevelopmentMechanisminAct.pdf and http://www2.nycbar.org/mp3/ClimateChangeLitigationNew_Y.pdf.

Green Buildings and NYC Local Law 86 — 7/17/07
Russell Unger, the Exec Dir of the US Green Building Council’s NY chapter, explains what green buildings are, and the NYC law that requires certain buildings to meet green building, or LEED, standards. Recorded July 17, 2007.

Anatomy of a Vapor Intrusion Tort Case 6/7/07
Scott Schwarz, an attorney at Mattioni, Ltd in Philadelphia, gives insights into a tort litigation involving vapor intrusion and explains how vapors from contaminated land can move, in this Environmental Law Interview recorded June 7, 2007.

Overturning EPA’sPower Plant Cooling Water Rules in Riverkeeper v. EPA 475 F.3d 83 (2007)
Riverkeeper and others successfully challenged the EPA’s rules on power plants’ use of cooling water. Reed Super, counsel in the case, discusses the decision and its impact in this May 3, 2007 podcast.

South Bronx Environmental Health Study 4/5/07
This episode focuses on the results to date of the South Bronx Environmental Health and Policy Study. Researchers from NYU address the relationships between air quality, transportation, waste transfer activity and public health in the South Bronx..

Incineration: Good or Bad for New York City? 3/22/07
Whether incineration and other thermal treatment technologies are viable alternatives for NYC waste, or whether NYC should recycle and compost exclusively is explored in this March 22, 2007 podcast from the New York City Bar’s Environmental Law Committee

Small Business Environmental Assistance Program discussion 12/7/06
In this 12/7/06 interview, James R. Coyle, Environmental Program Manager of New York’s Small Business Environmental Assistance Program, discusses the environmental resources available to small businesses; more at www.nysefc.org/home/index.asp?page=20

Filtration Avoidance Determination discussion 9/7/06
In this 10/5/06 Environmental Law Interview hosted by the New York City Bar, Bob Alpern explains the USEPA’s decision not to require New York City to filter its drinking water.