Environmental & Energy Law Program at Harvard Law School

A sign on a building that reads: United States Environmental Protection Agency.

On Aug. 1, EPA proposed rescinding the Endangerment Finding.

Our latest analysis breaks down EPA’s arguments, identifies legal risks, and examines the stakes.

eelp.law.harvard.edu/epas-proposa...

Listen to the full conversation here: eelp.law.harvard.edu/the-future-o...

New CleanLaw podcast: MA Attorney General Andrea Joy Campbell, Vernice Miller-Travis, and Hannah Perls discuss the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle federal environmental justice programs and local efforts to protect public health and the environment.

eelp.law.harvard.edu/the-future-o...

Graphic announcing a new podcast titled: Unpacking the White House's Legal strategy for Attacking Environmental Protection. Includes screenshots of three people with mics.

New CleanLaw podcast: @jodyfreeman.bsky.social, Carrie Jenks, and @aripeskoe.bsky.social unpack President Trump’s latest executive orders on climate, energy, and the environment and what's at stake as federal agencies move to implement them.

Listen now ➡️ eelp.law.harvard.edu/cleanlaw-unp...

Opinion | A Road Map of Trump’s Lawless Presidency (Gift Article) A diverse group of legal scholars flashes red warning lights about the future of America.

”The disregard for law is itself part of the agenda. They do not seem to care whether they violate the Constitution and statutes, make mistakes, do irreparable harm. That recklessness itself sends a message.“ @jodyfreeman.bsky.social in the @nytimes.com

Read  → www.nytimes.com/2025/04/28/o...

In early April, Trump signed executive orders to rescind regulations, undermine state laws, and revive the coal industry.

These orders assert sweeping authority and rely on unprecedented legal arguments.

Read our analysis and what we'll be watching ➡️ eelp.law.harvard.edu/the-trump-ad...

New Trump Administration Directives to Repeal Environmental Regulations En Masse Make ‘No Sense,’ Legal Experts Say - Inside Climate News Experts in environmental and energy law said the effort “reflects a complete lack of understanding of how government works.”

I spoke to legal experts at @harvardeelp.bsky.social @sierraclub.org and @westernlaw.bsky.social about two new directives from the Trump administration that aim to mass-repeal federal environmental and energy regulations:
insideclimatenews.org/news/1204202...

Read it now: @aripeskoe.bsky.social on Trump's ”latest effort to save the shrinking fleet of inefficient coal-fired power plants from extinction.“ ⤵️

Smoke rises from smokestacks at an oil and gas refinery. The smokestacks are reflected in the water next to it. A hill and bridge can be seen in the distance.

A new paper co-authored by @abbyhusselbee.bsky.social looks at how Clean Fuel Standard programs could be designed to direct public health, mobility, and economic benefits. eelp.law.harvard.edu/clean-fuel-s...

Want to learn more about strategies to reduce methane emissions from livestock? Join me and my distinguished copanelists next Thursday, March 27 from 3-5 ET on Reddit (r/askscience). Let's talk Ag policy!

In our latest CleanLaw 🎧, @aripeskoe.bsky.social and Eliza Martin discuss their new paper on how rate-setting processes can shift who pays for data centers' electricity, and how special contracts could be transferring Big Tech’s energy costs to the public.
eelp.law.harvard.edu/cleanlaw-who...

Power for data centers could come at ‘staggering’ cost to consumers New report highlights how traditional ways of setting rates don’t fit Big Tech’s massive, immediate demand for more electricity

Fantastic reading in report from @aripeskoe.bsky.social
on the potential costs of data center power for every day consumers. Read about it here floodlightnews.org/power-for-da...

What comes next in the Trump EPA's assault on climate and clean air rules A Harvard environmental law expert said the blitz of rollbacks the EPA announced is a "shock and awe routine," and rule changes will face a tough legal path.

@jodyfreeman.bsky.social weighs in on EPA's rollbacks, including the decision to revisit the endangerment finding for carbon dioxide: "It would essentially knock out EPA as a climate regulator." www.newsweek.com/epa-rollback...

Who is paying for all that data center power? Legal experts Eliza Martin and Ari Peskoe explain how data centers' massive electricity demands could shift billions in infrastructure costs onto regular utility customers.

Today on Volts: the costs of accommodating all those new data centers on the grid are being subtly shifted to ordinary electricity ratepayers, via rate cases. And in the process, Big Tech & utilities are forming an unholy alliance against grid reform. Two Harvard Law scholars get into the details.

Tracking the Trump Administration - Legal Planet The first month of the Trump Administration has resulted in a dizzying flurry of actions and reactions. Many of us are wondering how to track the status of these actions, including the legal challenge...

Your handy guide to the sites tracking the Trump Admin's rollbacks of climate, energy, and environmental policies and investments including @sabincenter.bsky.social @harvardeelp.bsky.social @nyulaw.bsky.social @ucberkeleylaw.bsky.social @uclalawemmett.bsky.social

legal-planet.org/2025/03/06/t...

Extracting Profits from the Public: How Utility Ratepayers Are Paying for Big Tech’s Power
My new paper with Eliza Martin uncovers how utilities are forcing ratepayers to fund discounted rates for data centers
🔌💡
eelp.law.harvard.edu/extracting-p...

Hurricane debris blocking a road and sidewalk. Downed wires. Two church steeples in the distance framed by a blue sky.

Climate disasters are on the rise and the recent executive actions are taking aim at FEMA. @hperls.bsky.social reviews the legality of these proposals and how they would impact communities and emergency management. eelp.law.harvard.edu/proposed-cha...

My clinic is hiring a new fellow! Come work with my excellent colleagues @andrewmergen.bsky.social, @sengels.bsky.social, and @shannonenelson.bsky.social on climate, environmental, and natural resources law issues. Posting: clinics.law.harvard.edu/environment/...

The president targets EPA’s authority to address climate change – will he succeed? - The Salata Institute It would be an uphill battle to convince federal judges in 2025, even conservative ones, that the scientific record on climate change is wrong.

The Trump admin is targeting EPA’s power to regulate climate-warming greenhouse gases, ordering a review of the “legality and applicability” of the endangerment finding. @jodyfreeman.bsky.social & Carrie Jenks on what this means and what could happen next: salatainstitute.harvard.edu/the-presiden...

Today, CEQ announced the removal of rules implementing NEPA, leaving it to individual agencies to revise their NEPA rules. EELP RA Eddie Zhanel ’27 tracked down the status of key agencies' NEPA rules — many are decades old and inconsistent with NEPA as amended. eelp.law.harvard.edu/nepa-overvie...

Explore EELP's resources on the legal and practical implications of the second Trump administration's environmental and energy rollback efforts: eelp.law.harvard.edu/topic/rollba...

California Wildfires and the Insurance Crisis: What's Next for Palisades, Altadena and the L.A. Area - Legal Talk Network In January, communities in Los Angeles were devastated by wildfires, permanently displacing thousands and  destroying property and lives. Prior to the Discover insightful episodes on Legal Talk Networ...

The L.A. Fires. Impact. Insurance. Next steps. We answer this and more right here on #Lawyer2Lawyer with host J.Craig Williams from @legaltalknet.bsky.social and special guest @hperls.bsky.social @harvardeelp.bsky.social
legaltalknetwork.com/podcasts/law...

Graphic of four people in front of microphones. Title: CleanLaw 100th Episode: Trumo's Bold Reversal on Energy and Climate Policy: "It's a Lot."

On our 100th CleanLaw 🎧, @jodyfreeman.bsky.social talks with Richard Lazarus, @andrewmergen.bsky.social, and Carrie Jenks about the Trump administration’s actions to date on energy & the environment and why the practice and study of law matter now more than ever. eelp.law.harvard.edu/cleanlaw-tru...

Sharing an essay just posted on LawFare describing Trump's attack on federal agencies as "structural deregulation" - we anticipated this in a 2021 article, though we hadn't gone far enough. We argue it's a provocation to Congress and a test of the courts. urldefense.proofpoint.com/v2/url?u=htt...

The president targets EPA’s authority to address climate change – will he succeed? - The Salata Institute It would be an uphill battle to convince federal judges in 2025, even conservative ones, that the scientific record on climate change is wrong.

The Trump admin is targeting EPA’s power to regulate climate-warming greenhouse gases, ordering a review of the “legality and applicability” of the endangerment finding. @jodyfreeman.bsky.social & Carrie Jenks on what this means and what could happen next: salatainstitute.harvard.edu/the-presiden...

Trump's power play: What's really behind his energy and climate orders Legal and business experts in the clean-energy sector are sorting through President Donald Trump's aggressive executive orders on climate and energy.

Sharing nice Newsweek piece by @jefftheyoung.bsky.social on the Trump executive orders on energy, and the sweeping federal funding pause, w some quotes from me and others- www.newsweek.com/trump-climat...

Oil pumps and rigs next to the water at sunset.

Read our initial insights into the Trump administration’s environmental and energy executive orders and what we will be watching as they take steps to implement them eelp.law.harvard.edu/trumps-envir...

Congress appropriated billions of dollars to address climate issues through the IRA and IIJA. Federal agencies have already awarded over $210 billion for climate-focused grants. We look at how the new administration and Congress control these funds ➡️ eelp.law.harvard.edu/executive-an...

YouTube video by #DogShirtTV How to Wreck the Federal Government

A fun and serious discussion about Trump and Doge plans to "reform" the federal government - what's at stake, what's at risk, what's not on the level, and why you should care, with my friend @benjaminwittes: youtu.be/SQCIQwmmqBI?...

✨ Looking for something to inspire and inform over the holiday break? ✨

Check out our CleanLaw podcast! Explore in-depth conversations on environmental and energy law, climate policy, and environmental justice with leading experts.

Listen (and subscribe) here: eelp.law.harvard.edu/post-type/po...