Environmental Resources and Law
Encyclopedia of Life (hosted by the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian) U.S. Geological Survey, the sole science agency for the U.S. Department of the Interior. How the U.S. Uses its Land (Bloomberg News) The Land Report (publication targeted to landowners in the United States) Regulations.gov (Federal government website) United Nations Environment Programme International Union for the Conservation of Nature E.O. Wilson Foundation
Clean Air and Water Women and Water (United Nations) The Microbead-Free Waters Act: FAQs (U.S. Food & Drug Administration - FDA) City of Toledo, Ohio's Proposed Lake Erie Bill of Rights 2019 New England Interstate Water Pollution Control Commission Clean Indoor Air Act (NYS Department of Health) Don't Trash Our Air (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) Open Burning in New York (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) An Assessment of Chemical Leaching, Releases to Air and Temperature at Crumb-Rubber Infilled Synthetic Turf Fields (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, NYS Department of Health) Nitrate and nitrite in drinking-water. (World Health Organization) Nitrate/Nitrite Fact Sheet (Water Quality Association, a non-profit)
Climate Change/Global Warming: Climate Change (Pace Law School Library) Climate Change Litigation Database (Columbia University)Juliana Complaint filed in U.S. District Court, District of Oregon, in 2015. Denial of Stay (U.S. Supreme Court) Opinion of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, 1/17/2020, dismissing case. (9th Circuit Court of Appeals)National Security and the Accelerating Risks of Climate Change (CNA Military Advisory Board, May 2014) Adaptation Gap Report 2021 (United Nations Environment Programme) Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (Environmental Protection Agency) Carbon Plan, a non-profit that models extreme heat in a changing environment. Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Invest in a Healthy Planet. Invest in UN Environment. (UN Environment Programme) Fourth National Climate Assessment Banking on Climate Change. Fossil Fuel Finance Report Card 2019. (Rainforest Action Network) Environmental and Energy Study Institute (EESI) (non-profit organization dedicated to promoting sustainable societies) The Impact of Climate Change on Children (UNICEF) Drawdown EcoChallenge: a fun and social way to take measurable action on the top solutions to global warming. Calculate Your Carbon Footprint (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) Calculate Your Carbon Footprint (The Nature Conservancy) The Well Done Foundation: cap abandoned gas and oil wells Modeling Extreme Heat ((carbon)plan non-profit organization) Transition Catskills: a group in the Catskills region who have come together to explore how they can make their communities more resilient in the face of resource depletion, climate change, and economic instability.
Composting Urban Composting in the U.S. (tableau public) Make Soil, a non-profit that matches people with food scraps to composting sites.
Electronic Waste Global E-waste Monitor 2017 (International Telecommunication Union) Electronics Donation and Recycling (United States Environmental Protection Agency) GreenDisk
Enforcement (State) Enforcing Environmental Laws (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) Report an Environmental Problem (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) Remediation: Declaration of Covenants and Restrictions (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation)
Environmental Assistance Programs NYCRR Title 9, Subtitle I, Chapter IV, Subchapter A: Clean Water/Clean Air Bond Act of 1996 NYCRR Title 9, Subtitle I, Chapter IV, Subchapter B: Environmental Quality Bond Act of 1986 NYCRR Title 9, Subtitle I, Chapter IV, Subchapter C: Environmental Protection Act
Garbage The Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal - United States did not sign onto it. Makes it illegal to export toxic waste from developed to developing countries. Waste Management in NYS (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation)
Green Living Greener Living (US EPA, 2025) Safer Choice, search products that meet the standard (Environmental Protection Agency) Green Living (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) Building Green Without Going in the Red (Citizens' Environmental Coalition) Greener Gadgets (Consumer Technology Association) Electrify Everything in Your Home (Rewiring America, a non-profit) Green Burial Council (non-profit) See also Solar Energy See also Wind Energy
Invasive Species 6 NYCRR Part 575 New York Invasive Species Information Clearinghouse (Cornell University Cooperative Extension) Prohibited and Regulated Invasive Species List with Questions & Answers (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) Prohibited and Regulated Invasive Plants with Photographs of Plants (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) Wild Parsnip Fact Sheet (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) Guide to Water Gardening in New York (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) NYS Agriculture and Markets Law §164: Control and eradication of injurious insects, noxious weeds,and plant diseases. See also §165: Damages for property destroyed; §167: Access to premises, quarantines, rules and regulations. National Invasive Species Information Center (USDA)
Lead Poisoning Value of Lead Prevention - Preventing Childhood Lead Exposure: Costs and Benefits As You Sow, table of lead and cadmium levels in chocolate brands.
Oil Spills NYS laws pertaining to Oil Spill Prevention, Control, and Compensation are found in Navigation Law Article 12. Underground Heating Oil Tanks: A Homeowner's Guide (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) The Oil Spill Law (NYS Attorney General's Office) Oil Spills at Homes and Businesses (NYS Attorney General's Office) Spill Response & Remediation FAQs (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) What Homeowners Need to Know about Fuel Oil Spills and Flooding (NYS Department of Health) Petroleum-Contaminated Soil Guidance Policy (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) Environmental Health and Safety Concerns; Oil Spills (NYS Homeland Security and Emergency Services) Leaking Underground Storage Tanks Corrective Action Resources (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency) Oil Spill Relocation Information for Responsible Parties (NYS Department of Health) Oil Spill Fund (NYS Comptroller's Office) Oil Spill Fund: File a Claim (NYS Comptroller's Office)
Summary of the Oil Pollution Act (US EPA, 2024)
Overpopulation World Population Clock (Worldometer) Mathematics of Growth and Human Population (UCLA)
Ozone Layer The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (U.S. Department of State) The Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency)
Plastics Fossil Fuels and Plastic (Center for International Environmental Law) Lifecycle Impacts of Plastic (Center for International Environmental Law) Plastic Global Law and Policy (Center for International Environmental Law) How Much Oil is Used to Make Plastic? (U.S. Energy Information Administration) Sample bill language to ban plastics (Beyond Plastics, a non-profit) Bag Waste Reduction Law (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation)
Recycling and Reuse Textile Refuse & Recycling (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) IFIXIT: Repair Guides for Everything, Written by Everyone NYSAR - New York State Association for Reduction, Reuse & Recycling Re-Clothe NY (NYSAR) SMART, Secondary Materials and Recycled Textiles Council for Textile Recycling Helpsy Plastic Film Recycling (industry supported non-profit) Earth 911, search for a recycling solution. call2recycle, locate a recycling location. RecycleNation Buy Nothing, a platform for giving away items. Give Back Box, a non-profit that facilitates the donation of particular items to charities.
State Environmental Quality Review (SEQR) The State Environmental Quality Review Act is found in Article 8 of the Environmental Conservation Law and Part 617 NYCRR. Enacted in the early 1970s. Mirrors the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) at the federal level. Its purpose is to incorporate the consideration of environmental factors into a state, county or local municipality agency's decision making process at the earliest possible time. SEQR Handbook (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) New York Environmental Legal Research Guide: State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) (Pace Law School Library) State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQR) Forms (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) Scoping Checklist Environmental Assessment Form (EAF) Workbooks (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) Assessing and Mitigating Noise Impacts (NYS Department of Environmental Conservation) See also Zoning
Superfund The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (CERCLA), known as the federal Superfund program, is administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and designed to investigate and clean up sites contaminated with hazardous substances. Almost every state has laws parallel to CERCLA. 42 U.S. Code Chapter 103 Superfund (Environmental Protection Agency) CERCLA/Superfund (USDA Agricultural Research Service) CERCLA Process (US Army Corps. of Engineers) Damage Assessment, Remediation, and Restoration Program (DARRP)
Wildfires Wildfire Risk to Communities (USDA, US Forest Service) Property-level wild fire risk information (First Street Foundation)
Wildlife Threatened and Endangered Animals and Plants (U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service) Wildlife Rehabilitator License (New York State Department of Environmental Conservation) Earth Species Project ICARUS: International Cooperation for Animal Research Using SpaceEcooptimism (website discussing environmental concerns) Eco Jurisprudence Monitor Nationwide Tree Equity Scores (American Forests) See also Environmental Protection Agency See also Nuisances
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Laws and Executive Orders