Since our last report in November 2010, the Environment, Energy and Natural Resources (EENR) Section has sponsored a number of successful programs and engaged in community outreach activities as detailed below. The EENR Steering Committee strives to hold, on average, at least ten events throughout the year. In addition, through its relations with the District of Columbia Department of the Environment, the EENR Steering Committee has in the past, and will again this year, prepare comprehensive revisions to the D.C. Bar’s Practice Manual on the District of Columbia’s environmental laws.
Over the past year, the EENR Section has sponsored, or cosponsored, a number of substantive programs of interest to our members. We also regularly sponsor programs with other organizations including the Environmental Law Institute, the American Bar Association and the Energy Bar Association. Many EENR Section members belong to these groups and our involvement helps strengthen the relationships between complementary organizations. Examples of substantive programs conducted over the past year include:
New Directions in Chemical Regulation. On March 31, 2011, we sponsored a panel discussion on recent EPA activities to regulate chemicals under federal statutes, including the Toxic Substances Control Act.
High Seas Marine Protected Areas: Safeguarding Areas of National Jurisdiction. The EENR Section cosponsored a panel discussion on December 16, 2010 highlighting recent developments in development on the high seas and international efforts to protect the ocean resources.
Conservation and Equity and Human Rights. Following up on our early program on deforestation, on September 22, 2010, the EENR Section sponsored a panel discussion on the interaction between conservation agendas and the rights of indigenous and local people.
The EENR Section continued sponsoring brown bag lunches with preeminent speakers in the environmental, energy and natural resources community. These speakers include General Counsel and other federal and local officials.
A Conversation with Ignacia Moreno, Assistant Attorney General, Environment & Natural Resources Division, U.S. Department of Justice (January 13, 2011). Ignacia Moreno, AAG for the Environment Division at the U.S. Department of Justice, discussed the major environmental and natural resources litigation involving the United States being handled by the Department of Justice.
A Conversation with Michael R. Bromwich, Director of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (December 15, 2010). Mr. Bromwich, head of the restructured Minerals Management Service, spoke about the challenges facing the agency, and the Department of the Interior, in light of the Deepwater Horizon accident.
Meet OZ’s Director: DC Zoning Basics and Initiatives (September 24, 2010). Jamie Weinbaum addressed DC zoning basics and initiatives of the Office of Zoning that will affect building activities in the District of Columbia.
Brown Bag Lunch with the Acting Director of DC Department of the Environment, Christophe A.G. Tulou, Esquire (September 28, 2010). Mr. Tulou discussed his plans and visions for the future of the DC Department of the Environment including his efforts to make the District a global model for urban sustainability.
The EENR Section community outreach efforts continue to focus on law students and young lawyers with an interest in environment, energy and natural resources law. On November 1, we sponsored a career panels with the George Washington University Environmental Law Association. We also held our annual reception with summer associates and interns (July 21, 2011). This informal event is our most popular section activity and includes not only aspiring environmental lawyers but also environmental, energy and natural resource practioners from academia, government agencies, private firms and nonprofits.
