Outstanding Environmental and Natural Resources Law and Policy Students

Jeremy Scott, Matias Lewin and Allen Wilson have the honor of being named this year's Outstanding Environmental and Natural Resources Law Students. The award is issued to the students with the highest grade point average while in the program. This year's students impressed us with their academic achievement. Congratulations to each of the Outstanding Students.

Jeremy Scott, LLM'13 shared, "I have loved every minute of my time at Denver Law.  I am saddened to leave the program come May, but hold the highest regard for the ENRLGP program and everyone I have worked with and for during these 2+ years.

Matias Lewin, LLM'13 reflected on his time in the Environmental and Natural Resources Law and Policy Program, "While being at DU as an LLM International student I have acquired very valuable knowledge in the natural resources area, especially in the mining industry where my professional practice is focused in Chile. I am sure that the knowledge acquired will contribute in a significant manner to the legal services that I provide to the clients of my law firm in Chile, Carcelén & Cia. – Abogados."

Allen Wilson, MRLS'13 shared,
"My experience at the University of Denver’s Graduate Environmental and Natural Resource Law & Policy Program has been invaluable.  The chance to study environmental and energy law and policy has improved my understanding of their impact on our current and future economy.  The classes are taught by extremely knowledgeable professors with proven expertise.The program places a high value on providing its students with a broad and up-to-date understanding of the issues facing our environmental, energy, and economic development—locally, nationally, and internationally.  The students are also very committed and truly appreciate discussing the issues with both these experts and fellow classmates.  All this makes for a dynamic and engaging classroom experience beyond compare."

Congratulations to Jeremy, Matias and Allen! Their commitment to the program, dedication and intellectual abilities are apparent. We are sure they will experience great success in their future endeavors. Don C. Smith, Director of the Environmental and Natural Resources Law Program, said, "Jeremy, Matias and Allen join a long line of distinguished graduates before them who have received this prestigious award. We are thrilled for them as individuals, as well as their families and friends who supported them in this wonderful accomplishment."

Colorado Economy Receives Boost from Wind

National Wind Technology Center - Colorado
A wind turbine blade being installed at NREL facility.

Colorado is seeing a rise in the wind energy sector, creating jobs and bringing money to local economies.  Peter C. Duprey, chief executive of Broadwind said, “The whole industry went through either a shutdown or idling at the end of last year [2012] and is now quickly trying to gear back up again.”

The “shutdown” was partly caused by Congress when they allowed the Production Tax Credit to expire at the end of 2012. The tax credit provides incentives for wind power production. The lack of stability over the regulation of wind energy has created a difficult and unclear path for the industry.

However, 2013 is seeing a surge in wind power investments. Congress renewed the Production Tax Credit in January, spurring activity. Tom Clark, CEO of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corp. said, "We are seeing acceleration of buyers of wind power in Colorado to get their projects up and running to get within the window covered by the credit." This is will provide jobs for many of those who had been laid off.

Vestas Wind Systems has several large facilities within Colorado and has just received its largest wind-turbine order from Canada. Vestas had also laid off hundreds of employees in 2012. The contracted order is for 166 V100-1.8 wind turbines as well as a 20 year maintenance agreement for the Blackspring Ridge Wind Project near Lethbridge, Alberta.

The Production Tax Credit and Vesta’s large contract are bringing jobs to Windsor, Brighton and Pueblo, Colorado.

Angelica Oman

Graduate Program Assistant

New Forest Monitoring System Addresses Data Delays

Forests are an integral part of life on earth.  Forests provide the livelihood for more than 1.6 billion people and support biodiversity, providing home to more than seventy percent of the Earth's land animals and plants. Forests provide several key ecosystem services as well. Trees are natural carbon storage systems and reduce greenhouse gases. They also have incredible roots that serve underground water utility functions, such as storing and releasing water into lakes and rivers.

The UN Environmental Programme (UNEP) and Interpol recently released a report entitled, Green Carbon: Black Trade, stating that illegal logging has created a criminal trade worth $30-100 billion annually, worldwide. Illegal foresting operations have gotten more organized in recent years. The use of bribes is common, but now illegal foresters are hacking government databases. They avoid arrest by moving quickly between regions and countries, laundering the illegal harvest by mixing it in with legally acquired timber.

Resource managers have been struggling to keep up with the criminal activity. Much of their struggle is related to the extreme delay in the access to monitoring data. The most recent forest maps of Indonesia took three years from the time the data was taken to being published online. Deforestation maps often take 3 to five years to create, making it difficult to respond to illegal activities. 

Global Forest Watch 2.0 (GFW 2.0) is "a powerful near real-time forest monitoring system that unites satellite technology, data sharing, and human networks around the world to fight deforestation." GFW 2.0 uses remote-sensing technology to show high-resolution deforestation maps on a user-friendly platform. The system uses satellite and crowd-source data which includes input from local communities.

The new monitoring system is the creation of collaborative efforts between the World Resource Institute, UNEP, businesses and NGO's from all over the world including Google Earth Engine. It is hoped that by providing better information, resource managers will be better equipped to combat illegal logging and deforestation.

For more information about GFW 2.0, visit their website.

Angelica Oman

Graduate Program Assistant 

Professor Smith and Students Hike at Elk Meadows Park

Professor Smith took students on a tour of Elk Meadows Park in Evergreen, CO last Saturday, the 30th. Students met at the park and played a quick game of bocce ball while waiting for everyone to arrive. Despite lingering snow in some areas of the park, the students had a great time walking in the sunshine and getting to know each other. It was a great opportunity to foster the love of nature we all share in the ENRGP community.

Lise-Anne McLaughlin brought her sister and their dog, Millie. Millie provided entertainment for the whole group, chasing down sticks and running around the group. During the hike, the group admired an old building in an open field and then spent time climbing a fallen tree.

After the three hour hike, the students reconvened at Professor Smith's house for dinner. Students were invited to attend both the hike or the dinner as their schedules allowed. Many students brought their significant others as well as their children. There was a flurry of activity among the seven children in attendance. Woody, from Toy Story, was also in attendance, whipping his hat around like a true cowboy. (Ayman Alghamdi's son came dressed in a Woody costume.)

We hope that we can continue to host events such as this and that even more students will join in the opportunity to learn and grow from each other! Thank you to everyone who attended then event!

President Obama Designates Five New National Monuments

Rio Grade del Norte National Monument, NM
Photo Courtesy of BLM New Mexico

On March 25, President Obama used his authority under the Antiquities Act to create five new national monuments. This action permanently preserves 270,000 acres from development. The announcement was greeted with praise from environmental groups who have been criticizing the Obama Administration's public land record.

The Antiquities Act of 1906 was created through the efforts of educators and archeologists to protect sensitive historic areas from looters (NPS: Antiquities Act). The Act allows the President to designate federal lands containing historic, scientific, or scenic significance. Designated areas are protected from harmful development activities like mining. The first national monument, Devil’s Tower National Monument, was established by President Theodore Roosevelt just three months after the Antiquities Act was passed.

The new national monuments celebrate western landscapes, African-American history and create the first National Park Service unit in Delaware. Here is the complete list:
Rio Grande del Norte National Monument, New Mexico
First State National Monument, Delaware
Charles Young Buffalo Soldiers National Monument, Ohio
Harriet Tubman Underground Railroad National Monument, Maryland
San Juan Islands National Monument, Washington

“These sites honor the pioneering heroes, spectacular landscapes and rich history that have shaped our extraordinary country,” said President Obama. “By designating these national monuments today, we will ensure they will continue to inspire and be enjoyed by generations of Americans to come.”

Angelica Oman

Graduate Program Assistant 

Announcing New Oil and Gas Law and Policy Specialization

The Environmental and Natural Resources Law and Policy Graduate Program is excited to announce the availability of a new specialization certificate: Oil and Gas Law and Policy!

DU College of Law and the ENRGP Program are committed to offering a rigorous and relevant course selection for its students. The advent of the oil and gas boom in the US has caused an increased need for natural resource practitioners specializing in the area. Our ability to respond to developments both legal and technical have assisted our climb to the top twenty law schools with environmental and natural resources programs.

Students are able to obtain up to two specialities. These specialties help the students to develop knowledge in a particular area. The students are able to build a course structure that allows them to fully development their knowledge and understanding of the area. Graduates who obtain specialization certificates have used these as a tool to market themselves to potential employers and to develop their future practice focus.

This exciting new specialization will join the existing specializations offered in Environmental, Land Use, Mineral, Energy, Water, Sustainable Development and Renewable Energy, and International Resources Law and Policy. To learn more about our course offerings and specializations, visit our website!

Supreme Court Upholds Agency Decision, Delivers Blow to Environmental Groups

Oregon GOP pushes logging (katu.com)

The Supreme Court issued a ruling last Wednesday on a case regarding the decision of the US Forest Service to not require Environmental Protection Agency permitting for storm-water runoff resulting from logging roads. The ruling ends a legal battle that began in 2006 with the Northwest Environmental Defense Center. The environmental group sought to force the EPA to take action against the logging company, Georgia-Pacific West.

Storm water runoff, resulting from Georgia-Pacific West's logging roads, carried heavy sediment into two rivers flowing through Tillamook State Forest. Justice Anthony Kennedy, writing for the majority (7-1), stated that discharges from logging roads are significant in rainy Oregon, and can contain “large amounts of sediment” which “can harm fish and other aquatic organisms.” Environmental groups had relied on the permitting process to protect forest streams.

The case touched on administrative policy issues; specifically, the amount to which agencies are accorded deference by the courts. Justice Kennedy explains, “When an agency interprets its own regulation, the Court, as a general rule, defers to it unless that interpretation is plainly erroneous or inconsistent with the regulation,” he said. “The EPA’s interpretation is a permissible one.”

Justice Antonin Scalia wrote a dissent nearly as long as the decision itself. He took issue with the ability of the agency to interpret its own regulations. The permissive approach by the court, he said, would allow regulatory agencies to float free of limits and bounds contained in the text of its rules. This case sets the stage for a high court showdown regarding the extent of judicial deference due to a federal agency when it interprets its own rules.

The case is Decker v. Northwest Environmental Defense Center.

Angelica Oman

Graduate Program Assistant