In People ex rel. Bonta v. County of Lake (2024) 105 Cal.App.5th 1222, the First District Court of Appeal held that the Final EIR (“FEIR”) and associated errata for a proposed mixed-use development project, located in a rural part of Lake County, failed to adequately assess the increased risk of human-caused wildfires the project created.
Opinions of the new Texas Business Court, a statewide, specialized trial court created to resolve certain complex business disputes, are now available online.
Greenwashing case dismissal sends an important message
On 19 November 2024, the Council of the European Union (“Council”) adopted a new regulation on environmental, social and governance (ESG) rating activities.1 The new regulation, which was presented by the European Commission on 13 June 2023, aims to make ESG rating activities in the EU more consistent, transparent and comparable.2 This
Other contributor: Jan Buschfeld
On 12 November 2024, a Dutch appeals court ruled that Shell does not have to reduce its CO2 emissions by 45% by 2030 compared to 2019 levels, as previously ordered by the Hague District Court on 26 May 2021. Shell now has the right to adjust its own emissions reductions targets
Avian Influenza: Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture Publishes Order Requiring Bulk Milk Testing
On November 20, 2024, the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture (PDA) Secretary Russell Redding issued a general quarantine order—effective immediately and published in the Pennsylvania Bulletin on November 23, 2024 (54 Pa.B. 7570)—requiring bulk testing of milk from Pennsylvania farms for
On November 14, 2024, EPA issued its third annual progress report on its PFAS Roadmap reporting on the agency’s three years of progress against its overarching goals of restrict, remediate, and research PFAS. The accomplishments highlighted by EPA include:
Despite the uncertainty surrounding the immediate future of the U.S. offshore wind industry after the re-election of Donald Trump, industry participants including the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (“BOEM”) are cautiously moving forward with development activities.
In Yolo Land and Water Defense v. the County of Yolo (2024 105 Cal.App.5th 710, the Third District Court of Appeal upheld the County’s EIR for a sand and gravel mine, known as the Teichert Shifler Mining and Reclamation Project. Downey Brand attorneys Andrew Skanchy and Sam Bacal-Graves successfully represented the County in this litigation,
The Maryland Government is Coming for Your Fossil Fuel Appliances, Again