Blog

Law and the Environment

Our blog provides perspective on developments in environmental law and policy - which developments may matter to you, and how and why they matter. Whether you are a manufacturer or a power plant developer, a renewable energy developer or hoping to be a renewable energy consumer, this blog offers commentary on current issues that are important to your business.

Trump’s EPA Abandons Climate Action
Blog February 13, 2026
Yesterday, the EPA published a final rule repealing the agency’s 2009 Endangerment Finding, the legal foundation for federal greenhouse gas regulation…
Can the Administration Persuade States Not to Bring Climate Litigation?
Blog January 30, 2026
Last year, the United States sued the State of Michigan, seeking a preemptive court order preventing Michigan from filing suit against firms in the “fossil fuel industry”…
Wading Into New York’s 2025 NYS Wetlands Permitting Changes
Blog October 30, 2025
Over the last year, the New York State (“NYS”) wetlands permitting and statutory regime has been flooded with activity as the impacts of the 2022 statutory amendments ripple outward…
The Prospects For Climate Change Litigation Against the United States Government Continue to Dim
Blog October 21, 2025
Last year, when the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals granted a mandamus petition and ordered that the complaint in Juliana v. United States be dismissed for the second time, I acknowledged that I had become more skeptical about the prospects for citizens’ climate litigation…
EPA Introduces Rule To Repeal Endangerment Finding
Blog August 01, 2025
On Tuesday July 29, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) announced a proposed rule to repeal its 2009 finding that greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions from new motor vehicles contribute to pollution and endanger public health and welfare (the “Endangerment Finding”)…
RGGI Third Program Review Concludes: New Model Rule and Strengthened Emission Caps Unveiled Amid Federal Scrutiny
Blog July 22, 2025
Earlier this month, the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) announced the completion of the RGGI Third Program Review, which resulted in several major changes to the RGGI Model Rule that will shape the program through 2037…
Massachusetts Statewide Large Building Energy Reporting Rules Now in Effect
Blog June 12, 2025
The Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER) has finalized the regulations implementing the Commonwealth’s Large Building Energy Reporting (LBER) policy, codified at M.G.L. c. 25A, § 20 and detailed in 225 CMR 27.00…
Trump Administration Sues Four States to Block Climate Superfund Legislation and Climate Deception Litigation
Blog May 09, 2025
As we have noted previously, a number of states have enacted legislation and/or brought claims against fossil fuel producers seeking payment for damages resulting from climate change…
Trump Executive Order Targets State Climate Laws—and RGGI?
Blog April 15, 2025
On April 8, the White House issued an Executive Order aimed at “Protecting American Energy from State Overreach.”…
1 of 17

ABOUT

In today’s fast changing world, almost all of us get our news – including our news about developments in environmental law and policy – electronically. This blog is not intended to be a substitute for the BNA™, or Greenwire™, or Google™, although we do hope that we will be able on occasion to let you know about issues that haven’t yet come to your attention.

What we really want to accomplish is to be able to provide some perspective on those developments. We’ll try to tell you which developments may matter to you. And why they matter. And how they matter. Whether you are a manufacturer or a power plant developer, whether you are a renewable energy developer or hoping to be a renewable energy consumer, whether you are a municipality or public agency or university, we want to comment on current issues in a way that is useful to you in your business.

Frankly, this blog also provides us with the opportunity to introduce you to Foley Hoag’s Environmental Practice Group. Our practice has been New England’s preeminent environmental practice for the past twenty years. We have the depth and capacity to handle the wide array of environmental issues that can arise in the course of your business. We will work with you to resolve any environmental issues that must be addressed in order for you to achieve your business goals – from permitting new projects to cost-effective cleanup of urban Brownfields properties to implementation of cost-effective due diligence in the support of acquisitions to navigating the emerging world of climate change regulations.

We will also assist you in the defense and prosecution of environmental litigation. As a result of our service to our clients, we have attained a national reputation in environmental matters. Our lawyers have built an impressive record resolving environmental disputes at the negotiating table and in the courtroom, and a number of our cases have produced precedents of national importance.

The scope of this blog will be commensurate with the scope of our practice. We’ll cover climate change, renewable energy, hazardous and solid waste, clean air and water, sustainability and green design. You name it, if it’s got an acronym attached to it, we’ll cover it.

As the headline indicates, we want to inform, update, comment, and discuss. In other words, while we’re going to enjoy posting, we’ll enjoy the blog more – and its usefulness will increase – if we hear from you also. Please comment on the blog entries. Let us know about developments we missed or implications of our discussions that we did not consider.

We look forward to the conversation.