This is an introduction to the special issue on environmental laws and sustainability of the on-line peer review journal, Sustainability. In this introduction, we attempt to synthesize key lessons from the issue’s ten substantive articles. These lessons involve the use of law to achieve...

This article explains why policy makers should seriously consider substantial early reductions in greenhouse gas emissions as a part of any post-Kyoto framework, and sets out suggested elements of a framework for early action in a post-Kyoto agreement. Substantial early reductions are needed...

The debate about how to regulate has all but ignored the most fundamental question of all - what to regulate. This article analyzes similarities and differences in the lists of regulated toxic and hazardous pollutants under five statutes the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, the Resource...

This article outlines what sustainable development means when applied to industry, the necessity for sustainable industry, and how sustainable industry can change and is already beginning to change the debate about pollution control. While it is possible for industry to have a positive impact,...

The growing prospect of comprehensive national climate change legislation raises many important questions about the role of state efforts in a national climate change program. This article identifies the key state/federal issues that should be addressed in any comprehensive national...

The United State Supreme Court's holding in Massachusetts v. EPA that greenhouse gases are air pollutants under the Clean Air Act makes it virtually certain that federal climate change legislation will be accomplished by amending that Act. This Article explains and justifies an approach to...

This chapter sets out proposed federal laws and policies for America's Zero Carbon Action Plan, a comprehensive report on how to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. This chapter sets forth recommendations for all four pillars of deep decarbonization – electricity decarbonization, energy...

The first part of this Article suggests a framework for understanding Article I, Section 27 of the Pennsylvania constitution. This second and final part of the Article outlines ways in which that framework should be applied.The Article argues that the environmental rights and public trust...