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Airports are contested infrastructures. They are regarded both as icons of modernity and as a threat to a climate‐neutral future. Judicial review is increasingly relied upon to determine the legality of planning permissions for further airport development in light of climate obligations. Focusing on regional airport development and the review of planning approvals for expansion at Bristol, Southampton and Stansted airports, this article shows how the relevant policies and legislation, as well as the courts in applying these, find cohesion between airport expansion and climate action. These efforts, nonetheless, are tantamount to an attempt at squaring the circle: the fundamental disconnect between climate commitments and the increase in greenhouse gas emissions from regional airport expansion remains unsettled. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Restoring ecosystems and enhancing biodiversity is one of many regulatory ambitions under the European Green Deal. The motivations to do so include, but are not limited to, enabling carbon removal by capturing and storing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere in land. The business model of such schemes is to help the EU and its Member States meet their climate obligations whilst safeguarding biodiversity, and when relevant, enable sustainable agricultural practices by creating transferable carbon credits awarded to land managers pursuing such practices. The idea of introducing market-based mechanisms in the management of ecosystem services is not a novelty, but the increasing prominence of carbon removals in the European Green Deal and its related legislative actions warrants careful consideration of legal quandaries about how such removals are to be carried out, why, where and by whom. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author reviews the role of footnotes as scholarly crafting in the legal profession and shares writing tips for early career scholars. She considers a perfectly constructed footnote as a sign of accomplished craftsmanship and that footnotes in legal scholarship indicates an alternative view or exclusivity. She points out that omission of references is an act of misquoting and a moral legal violation of the fundamental academic rule of intellectual honesty.

Plastic pollution is now considered one of the largest environmental threats facing humans and animals globally. Development of bioplastic materials may offer part of the solution as bioplastics include both nondegradable and biodegradable materials with both being important for sustainability. Bioplastic materials are currently being designed to encompass minimal carbon footprint, high recycling value and complete biodegradability. This review examines recent developments and trends in the field of bioplastic materials. A range of the most utilized bioplastic materials is presented (poly(lactic acid) (PLA), polyhydroxyalkanoate (PHA), starch, cellulose, bio-based poly(butylene succinate) (bio-PBS) and bio-polyethylene (bio-PE)) including their production, application and degradation options.

Infrastructure is often viewed through global and promotional lenses, particularly its role in creating market connectivity. However, infrastructure is heavily dependent on and constitutive of local spaces, where 'frictions', or disputes, emerge. Drawing on the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) as a case study, we examine in detail two cases of BRI-related climate change litigation – one in Pakistan, and one in Kenya – that shed light on the frictions arising from what is deemed the most significant transnational infrastructure project of our time. In doing so, this study demonstrates how infrastructure can be made more visible in environmental law and how environmental law itself provides an important mechanism for stabilizing friction in the places where infrastructure is located. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper sheds light on the existence of a differential deterrence regime in EU law, depending on whether the State or the firm is the addressee of a legal obligation. To that end, we review two areas of EU law--environmental law and competition law. Both disciplines employ fines to deter the State and the firm respectively from violating their specific duties under the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union: the 'duty to transpose ' with regard to State obligation under environmental law, and the 'duty to compete ' in relation to firms under competition law. We show how the deterrence regime is softer on the State in at least three ways: functionally (the purpose ascribed to the penalties), operationally (the method followed to set and liquidate the penalty), and procedurally (requiring prior judicial approval as opposed to immediate applicability). These findings are significant for two reasons: they suggest a State versus firm discrepancy in the EU's deterrence regime, and serve to initiate a debate on the desirability of such a divide. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the decision of the court of the case H. N. v. Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform in the European Union. It provides brief overview of the legal and factual background of the case, which involves a Pakistani national, who entered Ireland on a student visa in 2003. It outlines the judgment which relies heavily on the principle of effectiveness in intervening in national procedural autonomy to ensure respect on fundamental rights.