ProGov21 Policy Library

2010 Developments Under State Environmental Quality Review Act

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2011

Level Other Boards and Agencies

State(s) New York

Source New York Law Journal

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Environment & Natural Resources

The courts decided 37 cases under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) in 2010. This report analyzes these cases and finds that defendants were much more likely to win in cases where an environmental impact statement (EIS) had been prepared than when these was no EIS....

Funding Local Government Acquisition of Open Lands in New York State Part I

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2000

Level City or Town

State(s) New York

Source Arnold & Porter

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Environment & Natural Resources

As development pressures mount, local governments throughout the State of New York are searching for methods of retaining the open character of their communities. In most of these communities, the search for ways to preserve open lands includes an analysis of the extensive authority...

'American Electric Power' Leaves Open Many Questions for Climate Litigation

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2011

Level Other Boards and Agencies

State(s) All States

Source New York Law Journal

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Environment & Natural Resources

This article explains this Supreme Court decision which ruled that federal common law nuisance claims could not proceed because the EPA possesses ultimate authority on the regulation of carbon-dioxide emissions from power plants. From this decision, the author describes various questions...

The International Comparative Legal Guide to: Environment Law 2010

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2010

Level Other Boards and Agencies

State(s) All States

Source Global Legal Group

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Environment & Natural Resources, Energy

This legal guide provides a synopsis of U.S. Environmental law in 2010 oriented towards the international business community. It discusses a number of topics including, but not limited to, environmental policy and enforcement, environmental permits, waste, liabilities, and contaminated...

America's Forgotten Nuclear Waste Dump in the Pacific

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2015

Level Other Boards and Agencies

State(s) All States

Source Johns Hopkins University

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Environment & Natural Resources

Unknown to many specialists in the field, the United States built a repository in the late 1970s, filled it with plutonium waste, and walked away. It has no signs, guards, or fences and it is on an island threatened by the rising seas. The site is in the Republic of the Marshall Islands,...

Water Wars in Pennsylvania: How Corporations Play the Long Game

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2024

Level City or Town, County, State

State(s) Pennsylvania

Source -

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources

Private water companies often over exploit publicly-owned water resources, driving up prices and threatening sustainability. Policymakers and advocates must push back against private water companies to keep their water safe and affordable. This report exposes private companies political...

Local Policies for Environmental Justice: A National Scan

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2019

Level City or Town, County

State(s) All States

Source The New School

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Health

While local zoning codes and land use policies historically have been tools for segregating people and concentrating pollution in low-income communities and communities of color, community-based advocacy can transform these same tools into means for addressing cumulative burdens borne...

2011 Wales Ordinance 3 Prohibiting the Extraction of Natural Gas and Oil

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2011

Level City or Town

State(s) New York

Source Town of Wales

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Health, Public Safety

This local law bans individuals and corporations from engaging in the extraction of natural gas or oil through the processes of hydraulic fracturing or horizontal gas well drilling within the Town of Wales. Hydraulic fracturing and horizontal gas well drilling endangers the health,...

Local Law Provisions for Climate Change Adaptation

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2016

Level State

State(s) New York

Source Sabin Center for Climate Change Law

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Environment & Natural Resources

In September 2014, New York enacted the Community Risk and Resiliency Act (CRRA), which requires in part that the New York Department of State and the Department of Environmental Conservation create model local laws relating to climate adaptation for use by local governments. The...

Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Chicago: Emissions Inventories and Reduction Strategies for Chicago and its Metropolitan Region

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2010

Level City or Town

State(s) Illinois

Source Center for Neighborhood Technology

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Energy, Transportation & Mobility

This report compiles 33 potential emissions reduction strategies that, when implemented together, can help Chicago meet its target of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to 25 percent below 1990 levels by 2020. The area with the largest potential for reduction is energy use in buildings...

The Wangari Maathai Natural Garden at the Al Raby School for Community & Environment

Type Fact Sheet or Infographic

Year 2007

Level City or Town

State(s) Illinois

Source Center for Neighborhood Technology

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Community Development, Public Spaces

The Center for Neighborhood Technology (CNT) and Al Raby High School, a Chicago Public School, are transforming the school’s physical environment into the optimal environmental leadership learning environment. The installation of a native woodland garden, named after the 2004 Nobel...

The State of Water Affordability

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2021

Level City or Town, County

State(s) All States

Source The Mayors Innovation Project

Policy Areas Community Development, Environment & Natural Resources, Health

Cities across the country are struggling to maintain and update aging infrastructure while keeping water affordable, particularly for their most vulnerable households. This brief highlights recommendations for replicable solutions that will work within the regulatory environment....

The Value of Green Infrastructure: A Guide to Recognizing Its Economic, Environmental and Social Benefits

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2010

Level City or Town, County

State(s) All States

Source Center for Neighborhood Technology

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Energy, Community Development

The guide aims to inform decision-makers and planners about the multiple benefits green infrastructure (GI) delivers to communities. It examines the steps necessary to calculate a variety of performance benefits gained by implementing GI strategies and, where possible, demonstrates...

The Case for Climate-Informed Zoning: A Study of Fiscal Impact in Norfolk, VA

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2023

Level City or Town, County

State(s) All States

Source Smart Growth America

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources

As the impacts of climate change continue to intensify, zoning presents a key tool to direct development to protect communities from climate events. Norfolk, Virginia, a city at severe risk from sea level rise due to climate change, is among the first cities in the US to use climate...

Northern Arizona Council of Governments Comprehensive Economic Development Strategy 2020-2025

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2020

Level City or Town, County

State(s) Arizona

Source Northern Arizona Council of Governments

Policy Areas Community Development, Democracy & Governance, Economic Justice

This report outlines economic development priorities for Northern Arizona include expanding renewable energy production, growing the tourism industry, improving healthcare access, expanding educational investment, and natural resources preservation. It features economic analyses of...

How to Eliminate Paper and Save Time and Money: Rethinking Paper-Based Business Processes in the Finance Office Using Low or No Cost Technologies

Type Fact Sheet or Infographic

Year 2020

Level City or Town, State

State(s) All States

Source Government Finance Officers Association

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources

COVID-19 has forced employees and also forced organizations to rethink business processes that require access to the office or involve large amounts of paper. Governments have an opportunity to eliminate or rethink paper-based business processes to operate effectively under current...

Providence Water and Sewers Ordinance

Type Act or Session Law

Year 2024

Level City or Town

State(s) Rhode Island

Source City of Providence

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources

This Providence ordinance ensures proper removal and maintenance of the disposal of sewage wastes and waste waters to promote safe and sustainable water efforts. It prohibits the disposal of pollutants into public sewers, implements preliminary treatment to control the discharge of...

Litigation Under SEQRA Declining, Exemption Use Is Rising

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2010

Level State

State(s) New York

Source New York Law Journal

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Environment & Natural Resources

The State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA), the statute that requires the preparation of environmental impact statements for discretionary actions by state and local governments, has long been the most generative source of environmental litigation in New York. The following...

A Handbook for Integrated Water Resources Management in Basins

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2009

Level City or Town, County, National, Other Boards and Agencies, State

State(s) All States

Source Global Water Partnership

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources

This handbook outlines how regional governments can establish basin management systems, finance infrastructure development and operations, involve stakeholders, develop long-term planning strategies, and organize collaborative data and monitoring systems. It examines how local governments...

Water Main Geothermal: Could Existing Water Pipes Replace Dirty Energy Utilities?

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2020

Level City or Town

State(s) All States

Source Institute for Local Self-Reliance

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Housing

Water main geothermal combines the efficiency and technical capability of ground-source geothermal in cold climates with costs competitive to fossil gas furnaces. This report shows that water main geothermal could provide a viable, cost-effective alternative to traditional home heating...

2011 Baldwin Ordinance 838 Banning Natural Gas Extraction

Type Ordinance or Resolution

Year 2011

Level County

State(s) Pennsylvania

Source Borough of Baldwin

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources

This ordinance bans the commercial extraction of natural gas within the Borough of Baldwin....

Financial System Change, Not Climate Change

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2018

Level Other Boards and Agencies

State(s) All States

Source Institute for Policy Studies

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Environment & Natural Resources

In recent years, some of the most successful campaigns on climate change have focussed on divestment from fossil fuels, the burning of which is predominantly responsible for causing climate change. Putting pressure on banks, pension funds and university endowments can stop – or significantly...

How States Can Boost Renewables, With Benefits for All

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2017

Level City or Town, State

State(s) All States

Source Institute for Policy Studies

Policy Areas Democracy & Governance, Environment & Natural Resources, Energy

Given the current pushback on responsible climate policy at the federal level, innovative state and local actions will be critical if we are to achieve a just transition to a sustainable economy. The Institute for Policy Studies surveyed the array of measures that can accelerate the...

Regional Green Building Case Study Project: A Post‐Occupancy Study of LEED Projects in Illinois

Type Policy Brief or Report

Year 2009

Level State

State(s) Illinois

Source Center for Neighborhood Technology

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Housing

The Regional Green Building Case Study Project analyzes the post‐occupancy performance, costs, and benefits of 25 LEED projects in Illinois related to: measured energy and greenhouse gas emissions, water, commute transportation, construction and operating costs, green premium, health...

Robbins Residential Drinking Water: Seeking Sustainable Solutions

Type Letter

Year 2019

Level City or Town

State(s) Illinois

Source Center for Neighborhood Technology

Policy Areas Environment & Natural Resources, Community Development

Identifying sustainable solutions for water distribution and lower water utility rates within the Village of Robbins, a primarily low-income and African-American community struggling with municipal debt. Nationally, and counterintuitively, per-gallon water bills in low-income communities...

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