CleanLaw

When we spoke with Kathy Fallon Lambert about the science that should be underpinning the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards and the Clean Power Plan replacement, she told us why scientists should not be afraid to do work that is "usable, useful, and used." So here's a ten-minute crash course on the benefits of policy-relevant science. Enjoy!

Joe Goffman speaks with Kathy Fallon Lambert of the Harvard School of Public Health about her recent studies, with a team of many other scientists, that highlight overlooked potential public health impacts of EPA’s proposed changes to the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards and the Clean Power Plan/Affordable Clean Energy Rule (if you want to go straight to the CPP/ACE discussion go to 27:15). Links...

With Gina McCarthy, Janet McCabe and Joe Goffman led the team that developed the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards. Hear them discuss the effects of a new proposal to remove the legal foundation of the rule, and what might happen next. Janet's recent paper on this is here https://www.jurist.org/commentary/2019/02/janet-mccabe-epa-mats-revision/ and our recent analysis of the rollback is here https:...

Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter for the New York Times Eric Lipton speaks with Climate, Clean Air, & Energy Fellow Caitlin McCoy about his recent special report, “This is Our Reality Now,” covering the environmental and public health impacts of the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda in four communities across the country. See the special report here https://www.nytimes.com/in...

Our Climate, Clean Air, & Energy Fellow Caitlin McCoy speaks with Sarah Winner, Staff Attorney of the Center for Coalfield Justice and Interim Executive Director of the Three Rivers Waterkeeper, about the proposed Clean Water Act rule on the revised definition of “Waters of the United States” and the potential implications of the new rule for stream and wetland protection. Full transcript availabl...

Staff Attorney Hana Vizcarra speaks with our Executive Director Joe Goffman about the environmental legacy of George H. W. Bush. Joe shares his unique insider’s view as he reflects on one of the greatest contributions any president has made to public health and the environment. Full transcript available here https://eelp.law.harvard.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/CleanLaw-9-Hana-Joe-George-Bush.pd...

Our Electricity Law Initiative Director Ari Peskoe interviews Jesse Jenkins, a post-doctoral fellow at the Harvard University Center for the Environment. Ari and Jesse discuss fundamental principles of electricity market design and whether these principles will continue to apply to a low-carbon grid with high levels of wind and solar. Visit our website at https://eelp.law.harvard.edu/ Full transcr...

Our Electricity Law Initiative Director Ari Peskoe interviews Phil Sharp - former Indiana Representative and chairman of the Energy and Power Subcommittee, director of the Institute of Politics at the Harvard Kennedy School, and President of Resources for the Future. Ari and Phil discuss the history of PURPA and its implications for climate change legislation. Thank you to the Harvard University C...

Joe Goffman, talks with Cynthia Giles, former Assistant Administrator for EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance for the entire Obama Presidency. Cynthia and Joe talk about the Trump EPA’s enforcement policies, including a recent initiative focusing on the oil and gas industry, and the impact they have on air quality and public health. This builds on our EPA Mission Tracker work, ava...

Our staff attorney Hana Vizcarra speaks with Electricity Law Initiative Director Ari Peskoe about FERC natural gas facility permitting. In July, 2018 ELI filed comments with FERC arguing that accounting for the economic risks and environmental harms of greenhouse gas emissions in a permitting proceeding is consistent with judicial precedent and Commission practice. Full transcript available here h...

Our executive director Joe Goffman interviewed Dr. Francesca Dominici recently to talk about public health, pollution, and science. Dominici is Professor of Biostatistics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and Co-Director of the Data Science Initiative at Harvard University. Listen below, or scroll down to read key points from our interview on rollbacks and public health, new science...

We speak with Janet McCabe, former Acting Assistant Administrator for the EPA Office of Air and Radiation and current Assistant Director for Policy and Implementation at Indiana University’s Environmental Resilience Institute and a Senior Law Fellow at the Environmental Law and Policy Center. See here for key points from the interview https://eelp.law.harvard.edu/subverting-the-process-of-setting-...

Harvard Law School's Environmental & Energy Law Program Executive Director Joe Goffman interviews Electricity Initiative Director Ari Peskoe about the DOE memo leaked in May, 2018. The memo discusses a "Strategic Electric Generation Reserve" and tactics to support uneconomic coal and nuclear plants. https://eelp.law.harvard.edu/ Full transcript available here https://eelp.law.harvard.edu/wp-conten...

Episode 1: Joseph Goffman's Harvard Kennedy School Regulatory Policy Program audio by HLS Environmental & Energy Law Program