Publications
Jessica Wentz (2023), Environmental Impact Assessment, in Global Climate Change and U.S. Law (3d ed. 2023)
This chapter examines the role of environmental impact assessment in addressing climate change under U.S. law. It provides an overview of the legal requirements governing consideration of climate change in environmental reviews, with particular attention to NEPA and the assessment of greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related impacts. The chapter discusses developments in agency practice and federal court decisions concerning the scope and significance of climate-related impacts, including the application of NEPA to fossil fuel projects, and considers how environmental impact assessment can inform agency decision-making concerning climate change.
Romany M. Webb, Michael Panfil, Stephanie H. Jones & Dena Adler, Evaluating Climate Risk in NEPA Reviews: Current Practices and Recommendations for Reform (2022)
This report examines how federal agencies account for the effects of climate change on proposed actions and their environmental consequences in environmental reviews under NEPA. The authors combine an analysis of the legal framework governing climate impact analysis with a review of all 65 final Environmental Impact Statements (EISs) prepared for onshore energy projects between 2016 and 2020. The review found that none of the EISs contained sufficiently holistic, specific, and actionable analysis of how climate change could affect proposed actions and their environmental impacts. The report identifies best practices for climate impact analysis and recommends steps that the Council on Environmental Quality and federal agencies can take to improve the consideration of climate risks in NEPA reviews.
Michael Burger, Romany M. Webb & Jessica Wentz, Incorporating Climate Change in NEPA Reviews: Recommendations for Reform (2022)
This report examines how federal agencies should incorporate climate change into environmental reviews conducted under NEPA. It addresses both the effects of proposed actions on climate change, through greenhouse gas emissions, and the effects of climate change on proposed actions and their environmental outcomes. Against the backdrop of the Biden administration's review of the NEPA implementing regulations, the report identifies seven regulatory reforms designed to improve the consideration of climate change in NEPA reviews, including reforms addressing the significance of greenhouse gas emissions, climate change in Environmental Assessments, programmatic reviews and tiering, changing environmental conditions, use of the best available science, and consideration of costs and benefits.
Michael Burger & Jessica Wentz, Evaluating the Effects of Fossil Fuel Supply Projects on Greenhouse Gas Emissions and Climate Change Under NEPA, 44 William & Mary Environmental Law & Policy Review 423 (2020)
This article examines how the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) applies to federal decisions authorizing fossil fuel supply projects, including oil and gas leasing, pipelines, and export terminals. It analyzes emerging agency and judicial approaches to evaluating the greenhouse gas emissions and climate impacts of these projects, including questions concerning the appropriate scope of review, the significance of greenhouse gas emissions, uncertainty, and the cumulative effects of multiple fossil fuel projects. The article identifies inconsistencies and shortcomings in existing agency practice and proposes best practices for conducting more comprehensive analyses of the climate impacts of fossil fuel supply decisions.
You can find all EIA-related research and publications under Environmental & Land Use Law here and by adding the "topics" NEPA and/or EIA to find EIA-specific publications.