Colorado Environmental Law Journal

Introduction How should the federal government balance costs today against benefits a century from now? The question sounds highly abstract and philosophical, but federal agencies must distill the answer into one number: a discount rate. The number selected by federal agencies and subject to review by federal judges may determine the future habitability of Earth. Federal agencies making the rules relating to climate change face that daunting reality. The most important variable in modeling damages from climate change is the discount rate, the rate by Continue reading →

  Introduction The right to use water is key to making land productive and valuable. This Article will address the little-known topic of the rights of Indian allottees (those Indian individuals who were allotted lands under the General Allotment Act), and their descendants, to use water for agricultural and development purposes on allotment lands. Many allottees do not realize they have water rights, and in most cases, the allottees and their local community do not understand what law applies to those rights. This often contributes Continue reading →

  Introduction This Article examines the progress of renewable energy and energy decentralization in Sweden and Denmark. Both countries have numerous projects underway aimed at reducing dependence on fossil fuels and promoting greener energy options. These projects include boosting energy usage from renewable sources and adopting tools and technologies that will facilitate energy security and efficiency. Much of the work taking place in the two countries has the potential to be replicated in other jurisdictions. Denmark is at the epitome of renewable energy and sustainable Continue reading →

Introduction On November 10, 2018, as Californian families mourned the loss of their loved ones and homes to forest fires, President Trump tweeted a threat to withhold federal payments that could help those families rebuild.[2] Firefighters and lawmakers alike came out against this partisan attack, but that did not stop President Trump from doubling down in January and tweeting that he had ordered the Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”) to “send no more money” to California until they got their act together.[3] Despite the President’s Continue reading →

  Introduction The world is becoming increasingly interconnected, and our understanding of climate change and pollution now expands beyond the borders of individual countries. Even when the United States monitors and regulates its own contribution to emissions and pollution, these pressing issues are impossible to control through domestic regulation alone. Many goods consumed by Americans are produced overseas. Federal agencies have the ability to regulate the kinds of products that come into the country, yet these agencies have little control over the methods by which Continue reading →

      Introduction The rapid decline of various bee species—dubbed “the plight of the bumblebees”—has triggered widespread policy discussions about pollinator protections in the United States (“U.S.”). These discussions resulted in fresh developments in a few areas of law aimed at pollinator protection, including the Fish and Wildlife Service (“FWS”) listing the rusty patched bumble bee as an endangered species on March 21, 2017.[2] The rusty patched bumble bee is the first bumble bee protected by the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”). The recent listing Continue reading →