The Climate Report | Second Quarter 2025
REGULATORY ISSUES & UPDATES
Trump Paves Way for Coal Renaissance and Targets State Climate Change Efforts
In early April, President Trump issued several presidential actions to revive the coal industry, including rolling back environmental regulations that would restrict emissions.
Flexibility and Targets: The Latest Developments in EU and UK Vehicle Emissions Policy
April 2025 saw regulatory developments on vehicle emissions standards in both the European Union and the United Kingdom—changes of significant interest to vehicle manufacturers, users, and purchasers.
Congressional Review Act: How Congress Can Rescind the Former Administration's Guidance on the Environment, Climate, and Energy
The Congressional Review Act has been often used to overturn traditional administrative rules and guidance documents during transitions between presidential administrations.
UK's Climate Change Committee Publishes Seventh Carbon Budget
A report by the independent Climate Change Committee sets out the recommended level of greenhouse gas emissions and provides a pathway to achieve net zero emissions by 2050.
Uneven Stop-the-Clock Provisions Throughout Europe on Sustainability Reporting
The EU's "Stop the Clock" Directive, introduced as part of the Omnibus proposal, has resulted in uneven delays in sustainability reporting requirements across Europe.
LITIGATION ISSUES & UPDATES
Climate Resilience Under Legal Scrutiny: France's Adaptation Plan Challenged in Groundbreaking Action
A coalition of individuals and NGOs is targeting France's climate adaptation policies, alleging they are opaque and unfit to protect the population from already present climate impacts.
Environmental Groups Sue New York to Implement Greenhouse Gas Reduction Law
A coalition of environmental groups in New York filed a lawsuit in March to compel the New York Department of Environmental Conservation to issue regulations implementing the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act's greenhouse gas reduction requirements.
Youth Climate Litigants See Success in One State, Dismissal in Another
Following the differing outcomes of two similar environmental rights cases, future youth plaintiffs in the United States may focus their attention on targeting more specific laws rather than challenging state environmental programs more generally.
Related Lawsuits in Separate Countries Reflect Different Approach to Climate Litigation
Climate change lawsuits often allege claims under constitutional provisions, human rights laws, or environmental statutes and regulations. Lawsuits filed in separate countries by Energy Transfer and Greenpeace International related to the Dakota Access Pipeline take a different approach that could be used by others in future litigation correlated with climate change issues.
TRANSACTIONAL ISSUES & UPDATES
Evolving NEPA Regulations May Facilitate Energy Projects
The Trump administration has issued executive orders and interim final rules to deregulate the environmental review process in hopes to spur growth in energy projects, particularly in fossil fuels.
LAWYER SPOTLIGHT
Joe Herbster, of counsel in Jones Day's Energy Practice in the Houston Office, counsels and defends energy, petrochemical, warehousing, logistics, and retail clients on a broad array of environmental, occupational health, and safety issues at the state and federal levels.
Joe's practice spans environmental diligence and transactional support, compliance counseling, investigation defense, and dispute resolution. He advises clients on myriad environmental issues, including Clean Air Act permitting and enforcement, Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, or CERCLA, site remediation management and contribution claims, and multistate groundwater contamination litigation.
Joe carries a decade of experience as a senior in-house attorney within the corporate legal departments of Amazon, TotalEnergies, and Chevron Phillips Chemical Company.
