Climate Change Law: An Introduction Introduction 29 Energy Law Journal 2008

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29 Energy L.J. 1 (2008)
Climate Change Law: An Introduction

handle is hein.journals/energy29 and id is 7 raw text is: ENERGY LAW
JOURNAL
Volume 29, No. 1 2008
CLIMATE CHANGE LAW: AN INTRODUCTION
John C. Dernbach * and Seema Kakade **
Synopsis: Climate change law is a new and rapidly developing area of law.
This article explains the basic elements of climate change law, with a particular
focus on those issues that promise to be important for a considerable time as well
as the major factors that are driving the development of this law. The law of
climate change is being constructed at the intersection of several areas of law,
including environmental law, energy law, business law, and international law.
Any effort to address climate change also raises issues about the proper role of
state, local, and federal governments, as well as their relationship to one another.
This article is intended to serve as an introduction to this complex and rapidly
changing subject.
I. Foundation: Science, Emissions, and Policy Options .................................. 2
A . Clim ate Change Science .................................................................... 3
B. U.S. Greenhouse Gas Emissions ...................................................... 5
C . Policy O ptions ................................................................................... 8
II. International Law of Climate Change ........................................................ 9
A. United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ............ 9
B. Kyoto Protocol and Negotiations for Subsequent Protocol ............. 10
C. European Union Emissions Trading System .................................. 12
D . C anadian Policy ............................................................................. 14
III. State and Regional Law and Regulation on Climate Change .................... 15
A . State E fforts ...................................................................................... 15
B . R egional Efforts ............................................................................... 19
C. Tort Law and Litigation .................................................................... 19
D . Corporate Governance .................................................................... 20
John C. Dembach is Professor of Law at Widener University. He is former policy director of the
Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection. He can be reached at jcdembach@widener.edu.
.* Seema Kakade currently works as an attorney with the U.S. Department of Energy. This article is co-
authored in her personal capacity and does not represent any official viewpoint or position of the Department of
Energy or the U.S. Government. She can be reached at skakade@law.gwu.edu.