The heads of the German Christian Democratic Union (CDU), the Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU) and the German Social Democratic Party (SPD) presented their plans for their joint Government on April 9, 2025....more
In this week’s edition, we look at a Brazilian enforcement action relating to illegal deforestation in the Amazon. We also discuss ESMA’s opinion on the functioning of the Sustainable Finance Framework, as well as proposed...more
Our national climate goals of net zero emissions, renewable energy transition, electrified vehicle fleets, clean steel, green hydrogen, and the rest of the package focus on the ramp-up of clean energy sources and end uses. As...more
The Australian Federal Minister for the Environment and Water has tabled proposed laws before the Australian Parliament to establish new national environmental agencies, enhance their enforcement powers and establish the...more
In this week’s edition, we discuss the European Parliament’s approval of a certification framework that is set to govern carbon removal activities, including the proper certification of carbon credits. Europe continues to...more
As discussed in our earlier Client Alerts, California recently passed several laws requiring certain climate-related corporate disclosures, including, for example, regarding emissions and climate-related financial risk. As...more
Good morning! This is Akin’s newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from the past two weeks and forthcoming climate-related events and...more
A lot, it turns out. The Biden Administration, bending the knee to the progressive wing of the Democratic Party, has paused approval of new LNG export facilities. (In terms of influence on the President, this “wing” is...more
Over a year ago, New York City Mayor Eric Adams announced the “City of Yes”, a plan to update the City’s zoning tools to support small businesses, create affordable housing, and promote sustainability. On December 6, 2023,...more
The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea held a series of public hearings that started September 11, 2023 following a request submitted by the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change (COSIS) to clarify...more
On September 5, 2023, the Corporate Leaders Group Europe (CLG Europe) published a position paper urging the European Union to cut its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 90% by 2040, and asked EU member states to...more
California lawmakers seek to raise the bar on climate regulation through the California Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act (Senate Bill 253), which would require large public and private companies to disclose their...more
On July 25, 2023, Representative Ted Lieu and 19 other Democratic lawmakers from the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate sent a letter to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, requesting that the Department of Justice...more
The UK Climate Change Committee (CCC) recently released its 2023 statutory report, evaluating the UK’s progress towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions and meeting carbon reduction targets. This report, mandated by the...more
The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) has introduced the Recognition and Accountability Framework to recognize voluntary climate change pledges by non-state actors and ensure greater transparency...more
Options to cap and cut emissions from the Canadian oil and gas sector were proposed by Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) in July 2022. Reducing oil and gas sector emissions is necessary for Canada to achieve its...more
On November 16, 2022, the California Air Resources Board (“CARB”) finalized its 2022 Scoping Plan (the “Scoping Plan”) laying out how California plans to achieve its long-term climate target of carbon neutrality. The State’s...more
The COP15 biodiversity conference in Montreal concluded yesterday with the announcement of an agreement, apparently reached over the objection of certain African nations, to, among other things, conserve 30% globally of land...more
As part of an effort to move towards global carbon neutrality, Canada published its 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan in March of 2022 which focuses on achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. Working towards a strong economy...more
A recently-issued multi-agency report highlights a path for the U.S. government to replace fossil fuel-based jet fuel with renewable sources to address climate change and encourage infrastructure development. The U.S....more
REGULATORY ISSUES & UPDATES - UK Introduces New Climate-Related Disclosure Regulations for UK Companies and LLPs - The Companies (Strategic Report) (Climate-related Financial Disclosure) Regulations 2022 ("the...more
On March 29, 2022, the Minister of Environment and Climate Change, supported by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, tabled Canada’s new 2030 Emissions Reduction Plan (the “Plan”). The Plan describes the existing and new measures...more
Concurrent with commitments made during the twenty-sixth meeting of the United Nations’ COP26 summit in Glasgow, Scotland, the Biden Administration released two significant policies aimed at analyzing and curtailing the...more
After years of attempts with varying success to regulate methane emissions from new oil and gas wells, the Biden administration has shifted strategy in proposing a regulatory program covering both new and existing oil and...more
Climate Change Regulatory Issues & Updates - New NEPA Proposed Rule from CEQ Leaves Uncertain How U.S. Federal Agencies Must Assess Climate Change Impacts - On October 7, 2021, the Council on Environmental Quality...more