According to a recent article on Inhabitat, the Attorney General of New York, Eric Schneiderman, is suing the federal government for failure to comply with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).

The lawsuit, filed in Brooklyn, states that the Delaware River Basin Commission, with full approval by federal agencies, proposed regulations on fracking without conducting a full review on the possible effects on the environment.

Fracking, the common term for high-volume hydraulic fracturing, uses enormous quantities of water mixed with chemicals and sand to break through the layer of shale and access natural gas deposits, and as other incidents in the past have shown, can endanger the local drinking water supply. (There are a couple of great documentaries on this subject, like 2009’s Split Estate and 2010’s Gasland.) The drinking water supply at stake in this lawsuit could affect up to 15 million people in the New York and Philadelphia areas.

Head over to Inhabitat (linked above) to read more about this important case, and visit the Denver Post to read about the impact of fracking here in Colorado.

photo via Split Estate

This week, The Guardian’s Environmental Blog featured a story on the increasing number of New York City buildings with green rooftops. Aside from simply improving the view, these designs also improve the environment in the city know for its towering skyscrapers.

The green rooftop movement is still small, but it has put the idea and design on the mind of many architects lately. These architects have actually started including green rooftops in the designs of new buildings throughout the five boroughs instead of including them as an after-thought.

Analysts have cited green rooftops as a big help to absorb up to 70% of the excess rainwater that would otherwise runoff, causing drain systems in the city to flood with sewage.

Tax incentives and the environmental movement are helping New York City to catch up with cities like Chicago that embraced the green rooftop years ago. As more resources become available and costs go down, even more builders and architects will get in on the game. Green rooftops save so much money in the long run, they can be found in most LEED-certified buildings.

What do you think of the green rooftop movement? Share your thoughts by leaving a comment below.

Photo courtesy of The Guardian Environmental Blog

Coalition of environmentalists claim government has failed to protect the atmosphere

Lawyers representing children and young adults filed a series of lawsuits against the US government alleging that its agencies have fallen short in their duty to protect the Earth’s atmosphere for future generations.

Cases are to be launched in every state and Washington DC, according to the plaintiffs, a coalition of green groups called Our Children’s Trust.

The individual plaintiffs named in the suits are mostly teenagers, as part of an effort to emphasise the obligation that the government and state legislatures have to preserve a healthy atmosphere for future generations.

The aim of the suits is to have the atmosphere declared a “public trust” deserving of special protection, a concept previously used to clean up polluted rivers and coastlines.

Legal experts remain unsure whether the principle could be applied to climate change, but noted the parallels with an ongoing lawsuit brought by a number of states against the five largest US utilities that is attempting to brand greenhouse gas emissions a “public nuisance”.

Even victories in just one or two states would give the environmental movement increased leverage as it campaigns for the revival of legislation tackling emissions that had previously been blocked by Congress.

“People have tried pushing legislation and that hasn’t worked,” Alex Loorz, a 16 year-old Californian named as one of the plaintiffs, told Associated Press. “Obama hasn’t been able to push anything through. The only option we have is the judicial system – taking this to the courts.”

Judges will have to decide whether the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) existing efforts to curb greenhouse gas emissions go far enough.

The agency has controversially decreed that greenhouse gases are a threat to public health, and is in the process of introducing regulations to curb emissions. As such, the EPA and the Obama administration have consistently argued that the ongoing regulatory efforts should not be pre-empted by the courts.

The Supreme Court is expected to issue an opinion on the public nuisance case this spring, which could influence courts hearing the public trust suits.

The cases are likely to take years to be resolved, but if successful they could have huge implications for carbon intensive businesses by effectively forcing the government to impose more stringent emissions regulations.

Source: Businessgreen