Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy v. Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
In an unpublished opinion, a state appellate court upheld the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources' rules under which the permit for a copper-nickel-platinum mine was issued. Environmental groups challenged the rules, asserting that they were constitutionally vague and unenforceable. The court ...
Information Network for Responsible Mining v. Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board
A state appellate court reversed a judgment upholding the Colorado Mined Land Reclamation Board's order granting a uranium mining company's request for approval of a second period of temporary cessation. Environmental groups argued the lower court erred in affirming the Board's order because the ord...
Center for Biological Diversity v. United States Fish and Wildlife Service
A district court vacated the the U.S. Forest Service's approval of an open-pit copper mining operation in the Coronado National Forest that included the dumping of approximately 1.9 billion tons of mine waste across over 2,000 acres of the forest. Environmental groups and tribes argued the Service m...
Herding Cats: Governing Distributed Innovation [Abstract]
Do-It-Yourself biology, 3D printing, and the sharing economy are equipping ordinary people with new powers to shape their biological, physical, and social environments. This phenomenon of distributed innovation is yielding new goods and services, greater economic productivity, and new opportunities for fulfillment. Distributed innovation also brings new environmental, health, and security risks that demand oversight, yet conventional government regulation may be poorly suited to address these risks.