As distributed energy generation is becoming increasingly common, the debate on how a utility’s customers should be compensated for the excess energy they sell back to the grid is intensifying. And net metering, the practice of compensating for such energy at the retail rate for electricity,...

Italian Abstract: La significativa crescita registrata nella produzione di idrocarburi estratti dalle formazioni di scisto (di seguito “shale gas” o “gas non convenzionale”) costituisce uno degli sviluppi più rilevanti nel settore energetico mondiale, resa possibile dall’abbattimento...

Italian Abstract: Dal punto di vista storico, le sovvenzioni statali vennero introdotte e diventarono prassi comune durante i Secoli XVI e XVII, in concomitanza con l'affermarsi delle teorie mercantiliste, anche se tendenze analoghe si erano già presentate in epoche precedenti. Nel corso di...

This contribution illustrates some unresolved issues and tensions that characterize the way the WTO deals with renewable energy subsidies. Indeed, the indisputable urgency to address the negative impacts of climate change on the one hand, and the use of subsidies to boost and support a...

Renewable energy subsidies are crucial for combatting climate change, and yet the world’s international legal infrastructure is not designed to accommodate such subsidies. The world needs a renewable energy sector to develop and implement the technologies necessary to reduce carbon and...

Vermont towns are required to have a town plan. The responsibility of the town planning department, the plan is comprehensive and details the current state of the town and embodies the residents’ vision of the town’s future. Town plans should be compatible with the plans of neighboring...

Water is a precious commodity that is becoming more scarce with increased usage and climate change. One of the most important new uses of water is for hydraulic fracturing, yet use of water for this is not regulated in times of shortage as is most other uses. We propose that in water shortage...

Across the United States, legal and policy treatment of distributed solar photovoltaic (PV) energy is beginning to change. For decades, net energy metering or “net metering” (NEM) served as the leading state-level policy tool to promote distributed solar power in the United States. Over the...

Nevada recently overhauled its net energy metering policy, and instituted a new net billing program in its place. Nevada’s decision received significant attention across the nation, and raised the question whether other states will follow suit. This article reviews the process and decisions in...

Integrated decisionmaking is the foundational principle of sustainable development. Other principles, including the precautionary approach or principle, intergenerational equity, and public participation, all depend on integrated decisionmaking. Unsustainable development results from the...