Green Building Law Update

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Tag Archives: Stuart Kaplow

Fourth Circuit Raises the Bar for PFAS Injunctions in Citizen Suits

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Environmental, Federal
Businesses facing PFAS compliance challenges received an important victory in a court decision this month when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit vacated a preliminary injunction that had barred The Chemours Company from discharging PFAS compounds above permit limits into the Ohio River. In West Virginia Rivers Coalition, Inc. v. The Chemours … Continue Reading

Why I Am Choosing Not to Eat Pizza and Bagels Made with Potassium Bromate

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Environmental
For most Americans, choosing what to eat is a matter of taste, convenience, and cost. Increasingly, however, it is also a matter of informed risk management. As an environmental attorney who spends much of his professional life evaluating scientific evidence, regulatory trends, and long term risks, I support those consumers who are making the conscious … Continue Reading

Appeals Court Issues Injunction Halting Maryland Green Marketing Law

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, Codes and Regulations, Energy, Environmental
Maryland’s effort to police “green” marketing claims in the electricity sector just hit a major constitutional roadblock. In a decision last month, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit ordered a preliminary injunction against a 2024 Maryland law’s core speech restriction on describing renewable electricity, and sent the remainder of the case back … Continue Reading

Midge Spraying with Bti Along the Chesapeake Bay Poses Lifetime Risks

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Environmental, Local Government, State
For many waterfront property owners along the Chesapeake Bay, spring brings a familiar nuisance: aerial spraying by helicopters flying as low as 50 feet above the water, applying a naturally occurring soil bacterium as a biological ‘cosmetic’ pesticide to control midge flies. Swarms of the non biting midges (Chironomidae) rise from Maryland’s Back River, Middle … Continue Reading

God Squad Exempts Gulf Oil from Endangered Species Act – What It Means for Business

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Environmental
After this post, the Center for Biological Diversity and others filed suit against the Secretary of the Interior. The complaint is a good read. ________________________ In a decision as rare as it is consequential, the Endangered Species Committee, better known as the “God Squad,” voted unanimously on March 31, 2026, to exempt all oil and … Continue Reading

Maryland’s 2026 Environmental Laws: What Changed and Where the Opportunities Are

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Environmental, State
The 448th session of the Maryland General Assembly concluded on April 13, 2026, after considering 2,229 bills. During the 90 day legislative session, 884 of those bills passed both chambers and are being presented to the Governor for his signature by June 2, 2026. Despite the fact that Maryland is consistently ranked among the most … Continue Reading

Why xAI Is Likely to Prevail in NAACP Data Center Lawsuit

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Energy
After this was posted, on June 16, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a motion to intervene, requesting a dismissal of the case, arguing the turbines are essential for AI innovation, supporting U.S. military operations. The outcome could shape how environmental law and national security intersect in the AI era. For regular readers, after a … Continue Reading

Maryland Supreme Court Dismisses Landmark Climate Case Against Oil Companies

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, GHG, greenhouse gas
The Supreme Court of Maryland ruled last week, “[t]he question presented in this case is whether Maryland local governments may bring state common law tort claims against 26 multinational oil and gas companies to recover damages caused by global greenhouse gas emissions. We hold that they may not.” The Court went on to say, “.. … Continue Reading

Debunking Myths About Crumb Rubber on Playgrounds – What 100+ Studies Reveal

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Environmental, recycling, Sustainability
Few issues illustrate the symbiosis of environmental stewardship and public health as clearly as recycled rubber, commonly known as crumb rubber, used in playground and athletic surfaces. Since its introduction in the 1970s, crumb rubber has been scrutinized, debated, and, at times, misunderstood. Today, the weight of scientific evidence provides a far more settled and … Continue Reading

From EV Mandates to Building Standards – California Lawsuit Could Limit State Climate Regulation

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Federal, GHG
The U.S. Department of Transportation filed a lawsuit last Thursday that may reshape the regulatory landscape not only for vehicles, but also climate policy, and even energy use across the country. Be assured, this litigation is about far more than only electric vehicles in California. The complaint, filed by the Justice Department on behalf of … Continue Reading

Tokenization – Real Estate Reinvented in the Funding of a Maldives Resort

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Environmental
Real estate has long been characterized by friction: high minimum investments, illiquidity, opaque capital stacks, and access largely reserved for institutions. Tokenization challenges that paradigm. A new Maldives resort development provides a real world learning opportunity for how this financial architecture is evolving, and why it matters, including for environmental performance. In real estate, tokenization … Continue Reading

The Right to Bee – Peru’s Recognition of Legal Rights for Stingless Bees

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Environmental
The Provincial Municipality of Satipo, Peru has approved Ordinance N° 33, declaring the rights of stingless bees including legal standing to sue if threatened or harmed. The bees within the territory of the Avireri-Vraem biosphere reserve that spans nearly 16,000 square miles (.. larger than the state of Maryland) from the Amazon rainforest to the … Continue Reading

Climate Change Chapter Omitted from Federal Courts Reference Manual on Scientific Evidence

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, Codes and Regulations, Environmental, GHG, greenhouse gas
On February 6, 2026, the Federal Judicial Center, the research and education arm of the federal judiciary, omitted (i.e., withdrew) a chapter from the newest edition of its reference manual on scientific evidence that addressed climate change. . The manual is a guide to help judges make unbiased determinations about scientific testimony, but in this … Continue Reading

Why Land Subsidence Matters More Than Sea Level Rise

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, Environmental, resilience, Sustainability
When we talk about “sea level rise,” most people immediately think of melting polar ice and warming oceans. But along much of the United States’ Atlantic coast, especially in and around the Chesapeake Bay, that narrative only tells part of the story. Emerging science shows that land subsidence, the sinking or lowering of the land … Continue Reading

A More Efficacious Way to Measure Greenhouse Gas Emissions

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Climate Change, Federal, GHG, greenhouse gas
As an environmental attorney who spends much of my time advising business owners, I have learned an immutable truth: markets work best when the rules are clear, fair, and grounded in reality. Environmental policy is no exception. Contrary to the prevailing narrative in popular media, the global business community has not uniformly shifted away from … Continue Reading

United States Sues Morgan Hill and Petaluma over All Electric Building Laws

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Energy, Federal
On January 5, 2026, the U.S. Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against the cities of Morgan Hill (Santa Clara County) and Petaluma (Sonoma County), California, challenging local ordinances that effectively ban natural gas infrastructure and gas powered appliances in new buildings. The complaint, docketed as Case 5:26-cv-00056 in the U.S. District Court for the … Continue Reading

WARNING: This Product Contains an Ingredient Not Recommended for Human Consumption …

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Codes and Regulations, Environmental, State
Businesses across the country face a consequential legal and commercial crossroads as Texas Senate Bill 25, branded the Make Texas Healthy Again Act, thrusts state level food labeling regulation into uncharted constitutional and regulatory territory. The stakes are high: companies that manufacture, market, or sell food products may soon confront unprecedented warning requirements that could … Continue Reading

Microplastics – The Next Environmental Crisis We Can No Longer Ignore

By Stuart Kaplow on Posted in Environmental
For decades, environmental law has been built around visible harms: smokestacks, discharge pipes, landfills, and oil spills. We regulate what we can see. Microplastics represent the opposite problem, an environmental threat that is largely invisible, already ubiquitous, and increasingly understood to be biologically active. In many contemporary risk assessments, microplastics now rank among the top … Continue Reading
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