Blogs & Opinions
Should Harming Mother Earth Be A Crime? The Case For Ecocide
Authors:
Independent Media Institute and Reynard Loki
Date:
27 April 2024
Categories:
Environmental Crime ,
International Law
On December 3, 2019, the Pacific island state of Vanuatu made an audacious proposal: Make ecocide—the destruction of nature—an international crime. “An amendment of the...
Climate Change Litigation on the Rise
Authors:
Frederic Lalance, Karsten Faulhaber, Kevin Riehle, Orrick, and Vanessa Liborio
Date:
26 April 2024
Category:
Air
Keyword:
Climate Change
The recent decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) in the matter Verein Klimaseniorinnen and others v. Switzerland [1][https://www.orrick.com/en/Insights/2024/04/Climate-Change-Litigation-on-the-Rise#ftn1] has attracted significant media...
What You Need to Know About Dubai’s Ban on Single-Use Plastic: Fines and Exemptions
Authors:
Gulf Business
Date:
30 March 2024
Category:
Civil Penalties
Keyword:
Plastics
Region:
Middle East & North Africa
In a bid to tackle environmental concerns and promote sustainability, Dubai Municipality unveiled plans for a comprehensive ban on various types of single-use products, to...
Time to End ‘Waste Colonialism’ Through a Global Plastics Treaty
Authors:
Mageswari Sangaralingam and The Diplomat
Date:
13 March 2024
Category:
International Law
Keyword:
Plastics,
Trade
Region:
Asia & Pacific
The global production and trade of plastic waste have drastically increased over the recent decades. Plastic waste is mostly traded under the banner of plastic...
We Can't Have a Livable Planet Without a Healthy Wildlife Population
Authors:
Valerie Hickey
Date:
1 March 2024
Category:
Environmental Crime
Keyword:
Wildlife
Region:
Africa,
Global
In 2014, when the World Bank Group joined a meeting hosted by then-Prince Charles to discuss illegal wildlife trade, an elephant was poached every 20...
Suing Maldives to Enforce its Environmental Laws
Authors:
Robbie Newton
Date:
29 February 2024
Category:
Effective Enforcement
Keyword:
Enforcement
Region:
Asia & Pacific
An ongoing court case in the Maldives sheds light on why it is so hard to get the government to enforce the country’s environmental laws....
Athens Bag Ban May Cause More Harm Than Good for the Environment
Authors:
Jazmine D. Amoako and The New Political
Date:
19 February 2024
Category:
Local Government Enforcement
Keyword:
Plastics,
Regulations
Athens, Ohio, has recently earned its spot on the growing list of cities and states to enact a single-use plastic bag ban. Athens City Council...
How Canada is Lagging When it Comes to Clamping Down on 'Greenwashing'
Authors:
Benjamin Shingler
Date:
5 February 2024
Category:
Corporate
Keyword:
Due Diligence,
Private Sector
Region:
Americas
The federal government wants to strengthen how the Competition Bureau handles complaints about "greenwashing" — a blanket term for misleading or unsupported statements about a...
EPA’s Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives for 2024-2027
Authors:
EHS Daily Advisor and Lisa Whitley Coleman
Date:
25 January 2024
Categories:
Criminal Enforcement,
Enforceable Regulations
Keyword:
Climate Change,
Compliance,
Environmental Justice,
Hazardous Waste,
Water
With 2024 underway, it’s a good time for regulated industry to put the EPA’s 2024–2027 National Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives (NECI) front of mind. Every four...
Direct Funding of Indigenous Peoples Can Protect Global Rainforests & the Climate
Authors:
Joe Eisen, Suzanne Pelletier, and Torris Jaeger
Date:
24 January 2024
Category:
Tribal/Indigenous
Keyword:
Biodiversity,
NGOs
Region:
Global
Last week, Indigenous leaders from around the world joined business leaders and politicians for the World Economic Forum’s 2024 Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. While...