Pressure for change is building in the water sector. The industry is one of the country's largest energy users (it takes a lot of power to move and clean water) and reducing that use is an important step in meeting climate related targets. Concerns about the affordability of charges for some customers are increasing whilst European legislation is driving environmental standards up, protecting our vital resources but demanding ever increasing spending to do it ...
by M. Ann Bradley, as published in IOGA of West Virginia newsletter, October 2010 There appears to be an increasing trend among certain regulatory agencies to issue policies or guidance when a change in some regulated activity is needed or desired, rather than undertaking formal rule-making procedures to adopt such a change ...
OBVIOUSLY, AS REGARDS THE MINING INDUSTRY, QUÉBEC WILL NOT BE THE ONLY JURISDICTION IN WHICH ACTION IS EXPECTED AFTER THE SUMMER BREAK. WHILE THE PARLIAMENTARY COMMISSION CONTINUES REVIEWING BILL 79 AMENDING THE MINING ACT (QUÉBEC)(1), OTTAWA IS NOT OUTDONE AS THE HOUSE OF COMONS MUST PROCEED WITH THE THIRD READING OF BILL C-300 (THE “BILL”) ENTITLED: CORPORATE ACCOUNTABILITY OF MINING, OIL AND GAS CORPORATIONS IN DEVELOPING COUNTRIES ACT ...
New Dominican Electricity Law Promotes Private Investment By Luis Pellerano In recent years, the Dominican Republic has enacted a wide variety of new laws intended to enhance foreign investment in the country. These include new tax, foreign investment and environmental statutes. Recently, the government enacted a new general law of electricity ...
Spotlight on Corporate Governance One of the impacts of the global financial crisis on the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been an increased spotlight on corporate governance standards in the UAE. The Ministry of Economy published Ministerial Resolution No. 518 of 2009 (MR 518) which provides for enhanced corporate governance rules and discipline standards for UAE Public Joint Stock Companies (PJSC) ...
The TCEQ will hold an informational meeting today (August 31) from 9:30 A.M. until 3:00 P.M. (CST) to discuss the proposed changes to the air quality permit by rule and standard permit for oil and gas production facilities. TCEQ has proposed significant changes to both of these expedited air quality permitting authorizations that will make it more difficult to qualify for, and more complicated to comply with, the authorization ...
Under Law No. 4 of 2009 on Mineral and Coal Mining in conjunction with Government Regulation No. 23 of 2010 on Mineral and Coal Mining Business Activities, for the national interest, the Government can control the production and export of coal. In this regard, the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (“MEMR”) has authority to determine the annual production of coal in each province. In connection with this authority, the MEMR issued Regulation No ...
The public dispute between EPA and the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) over air quality issues continues to intensify. The latest salvo is a strongly worded letter from the state of Texas to EPA on the issue of air quality permitting of greenhouse gases ...
With Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) one of the discussion themes at ONS this week, the Norwegians will be looking to showcase their planned new CO2 capture plant at the Mongstad refinery. The initial pilot technology centre is expected to be in operation by 2011/12 and eventually the plant will have an annual capacity for handling 100,000 tonnes of carbon per annum ...
Subject 2010 – Country LatinLawyer Reference LATIN LAWYER THE BUSINESS LAW RESOURCE FOR LATIN AMERICA Reference Environment 2010 – Introduction Rafael Vergara and Paulina Sandoval Carey & Cía As most Latin American countries have begun or begin to celebrate their 200 years of independence, it is time not only to look back but also to look ahead ...
As most Latin American countries have begun or begin to celebrate their 200 years of independence, it is time not to look back but also to look ahead. This statement could not have been more suitable to what environmental law practice is experiencing in Latin America nowadays: a rapid growth and sophistication. Those days when no specialised authorities or statutes existed for the protection of the environment have been left far behind ...
A summary of the new provisions implemented by the law no. 3851/2010- amending the provisions of former legislation no. 3468/2006- regarding the development of the procedures for the renewable energy sources in Greece ...
The Legal FrameworkIn terms of legal framework, Indonesia’s current private sector development of the geothermal energy business is divided into three separate legal regimes. The first regime started in 1981 under Presidential Decree No. 22 of 1981 amended by Presidential Decree No. 45 of 1991 (“PD 22/1981”) which still continues to apply as it is grandfathered by the later enacted Law No. 27 of 2003 on Geothermal Energy (“Law 27/2003”) ...
Most patent applicants can now accelerate the examination of a select number of patent applications in exchange for abandoning an equal number of unexamined, pending applications, according to an announcement issued by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (“PTO”) on June 24, 2010 ...
The United States Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) is seeking public comment on a proposed three-track patent examination initiative that would provide applicants with greater control over the speed at which their applications are examined. The proposed initiative aims to reduce overall pendency of patent applications by providing applicants with alternative timing systems for the examination of their patent applications ...
There have been two significant new developments in the regulation of greenhouse gases (“GHG”). One is the long awaited introduction of new draft legislation that sponsors hope will bridge the disagreements that have prevented the passage of comprehensive GHG legislation. The other is the issuance, on May 13, 2010, of EPA’s greenhouse gas tailoring rule, the final piece of EPA’s multiple promulgations to commence control of GHG from stationary sources ...
The UK is a mature oil and gas province, past its peak, competing for investment in a global market. Nevertheless, there are still huge reserves of oil and gas remaining. Industry association Oil and Gas UK (OGUK) estimates that up to 25 billion barrels of oil equivalent could still be produced from UK waters. To put that in perspective, around 40 billion barrels have been produced to date ...
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which hears all U.S. patent infringement appeals, issued an order on April 26, 2010 requesting briefs from the parties in Therasense, Inc. v. Becton, Dickinson, and Co. (appeal no. 2008-1511) to consider en banc the standards by which courts should find “inequitable conduct ...
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, which hears all U.S. patent infringement appeals, issued an order on April 26, 2010 requesting briefs from the parties in Therasense, Inc. v. Becton, Dickinson, and Co. (appeal no. 2008-1511) to consider en banc the standards by which courts should find “inequitable conduct ...
The UK is a mature oil and gas province, past its peak, competing for investment in a global market. Nevertheless, there are still huge reserves of oil and gas remaining. Industry association Oil and Gas UK (OGUK) estimates that up to 25 billion barrels of oil equivalent could still be produced from UK waters. To put that in perspective, around 40 billion barrels have been produced to date. OGUK forecasts that with sufficient investment the UK could be producing 1 ...
This is Lawson Lundell’s web-based publication dedicated to keeping readers informed aboutdevelopments in Canadian mining law. For more information regarding the articles in thisnewsletter, please contact Chris Baldwin at 604.631.9151 or [email protected] orChristine Kowbel at 604.631.6762 or ckowbel@lawsonlundell ...
Website owners have had a legal duty to make their websites accessible to the disabled for more than a decade. With the new Equality Act 2010 reinforcing those duties later this year, now is a good time for website owners to remind themselves of their duties and prepare for the new Act ...
On April 14, 2010, the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (“TCEQ”) Commissioners are scheduled to consider proposing new rules that would significantly restrict the ability of companies who rely upon Standard Permits and Permits by Rule (“PBR”) for air quality authorizations to install new facilities or expand or modify existing facilities ...
Proposals to extend the scope of freedom of information in Scotland will, if accepted, expand an existing risk to the commercial confidentiality of companies bidding for public sector contracts ...
The EPA said Monday that it will begin regulating greenhouse gas emissions no earlier than January 2, 2011. The EPA announcement came in its March 29, 2010 decision regarding reconsideration of the December 18, 2008 memorandum from then EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson (“the Johnson Memorandum”) that addressed when air pollutants become regulated pollutants under the federal Clean Air Act (“the Act”) ...
