Title:

US Judge Halts Hundreds of Drilling Projects in Groundbreaking Climate Change Ruling

Link:

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/mar/20/judge-halts-drilling-climate-change-trump-administration

Citation:

Randall, C. (2019, March 20). US judge halts hundreds of drilling projects in groundbreaking climate change ruling. Retrieved from https://www.theguardian.com/environment/201 9/mar/20/judge-halts-drilling-climate-change-trump-administration

Main Ideas:

• Drilling on 300,000 acres in Wyoming has been stopped after a judge ruled that environmental laws concerning greenhouse gas emissions weren’t being considered on March 20th, 2019
• Bureau of Land Management was told they must consider the greenhouse gas emissions on oil and gas projects in 2016, but failed to adequately predict potential outcomes of their new project
• Some argue it is difficult to predict possible outcomes of this project and similar projects
• New drilling projects are increasing at higher rates under the Trump administration than the previous Obama administration
• This ruling went against previous precedents that had been set by other judges potentially creating a new precedent for future casesRelevance:

  The judge went against previous precedents in an attempt to limit greenhouse gas emissions that are causing climate change. In class, we have talked about the need for policy change along with lifestyle changes to limit the release of pollutants into the Earth. This judge is making sure that current environmental laws are being enforced and bringing up the idea that more laws are needed to adequately regulate greenhouse gas emissions.

  Questions:

  • Are current environmental laws being enforced properly?
  • What laws need to be passed in the future to prevent courts from having to step in to evaluate the environmental impacts of projects? Do we need more enforcement or new laws?
  • How do we switch from fossil fuels as the main source of energy to renewable energy sources?