ENVS 6310 Introduction to Environmental Laws and Policy
Instructor
Judy Kurtzman, Consultant Shipley Group, Inc. Senior Instructor Environmental Law
435-563-4046
435-764-8779 (cell)
judy.kurtzman@usu.edu
Course Objectives
Introduce the objectives and requirements of federal environmental laws and policies
used in public (and private) land and resource management. In this course we will
explore 16 laws, regulations, and polices passed by the Congress, or issued by the
President of the United States, to protect both natural and cultural resources. The laws
and policies studied in this this course are those most frequently encountered by resource
managers and specialists. By the end of this course students will be able to:
 Identify the difference between laws, regulations, and policies and their
compliance requirements.
 Understand the role federal courts play in enforcing and interpreting
environmental laws.
 Recognize the need for and role of environmental laws and policies in managing
public lands and resources.
 Become familiar with compliance requirements for the 16 federal natural and
cultural resource laws and polices covered in the course.
Course Description
This course will begin with a discussion on the background and differences between
laws, regulations and policies, and the role federal courts have played in interrupting and
shaping compliance with them. We will also discuss the history of environmental laws
and policies, and how public perception of the need for them has changed over the years.
As mentioned above, we will focus on 16 federal natural and cultural resource laws,
regulations, and policies public land managers (and some private) should be familiar with
to effectively manage the lands and resources they hold in trust for citizens of the U.S.
The most important objective for this course is for students to understand the purpose of
the laws, and compliance requirements.
Each week students are asked to watch an audio lecture (usually 20-30 minutes) with
PowerPoint slides in which I introduce the law and describe compliance requirements. I
also assign weekly readings to reinforce the information presented in the lecture, and that
I believe (hope?) students will find interesting. Based on the reading (and lecture) a
weekly discussion topic is presented to the students, which is intended to help them use
their critical thinking skills, and share their own professional experiences with these laws
and policies. Students are also required to review and comment on an Environmental
Assessment (EA) for the session on the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and
write a term paper on how the controversies associated with the Endangered Species Act
(ESA) and share their views on those controversies. Additionally, the course includes a
mid-term short-answer essay exam, and a final exam stating which laws they feel are
most effective and meet their purposes.
The course is divided into the following eight sections:
I. Introduction to Laws, Regulations and Policies
a. What is the difference between these terms; and the role of the judiciary in
interpreting and enforcing Federal laws, regulations and policies
b. History of Environmental Laws and Policies
II. National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Environmental Justice
III. Water Policy
a. Clean Water Act (CWA)
b. Executive Order 11990 Wetlands
c. Executive Order 11988 Floodplains
IV. Wildlife Policy
a. Endangered Species Act (ESA)
b. Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA)
c. Executive Order 13186 Migratory Birds
V. Clean Air Act (CAA) and Climate Change Policies
VI. Wilderness Act and Recreation Policy
a. Wilderness Act of 1964
b. National Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976 (BLM)
c. Federal Land Management Act of 1976 (USFS)
VII. Cultural Resource Policies
a. National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA)
b. Archeological Resources Protection Act (ARPA)
VIII. Native American Cultural Resource Policies
a. Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA)
b. American Indian Religious Freedom Act (AIRFA)
c. Executive Order 13007 Indian Sacred Sites
d. Executive Oder 13084 Consultation and Coordination with Indian Tribal
Governments
Grading
Grading will be based on the following:
Discussion - 30%
Assignments (2) - 20%
Mid-term - 25%
Final Exam - 25%
My teaching Philosophy
I would like to share with you the following quote I found in a weekly online journal,
(Faculty Focus, July 25, 2011) written by Simon Yisrael Feuerman, an adjunct professor
of psychology at Kean University. In his article he discusses the problem of grade
inflation, often due to graduate students’ expectations they should receive an A in every
course they take. He notes, “Woody Allen is famous for saying that 90% of life is just
showing up. But that’s just it, you don’t get an A for just showing up. You have to be
extraordinary to get an A. You do not get an A in life for just showing up and complying
or even for cooperating. You get an A for adding to the experience, for giving, for
risking, for showing enthusiasm, for adding life.”
That is the reason I put the largest percentage of your grade for this course on your
participation in the weekly discussions. This gives you the opportunity to show you read
the material, thought about it, and shared your thoughts in a manner that allowed other
students to think about the problem from a different perspective. Sometimes it is through
articulating a thoughtful opinion that you give others food for thought, this is what I hope
to do in this course.
Course Resources
Canvas
Canvas is a Learning Management System Utah State University uses for all online
courses. You can login to Canvas at https://canvas.usu.edu/ using your USU A# and
global password (the same one you use for Access or Aggiemail).
Begin Here
The “Begin Here” section of the Canvas site is provided to give you information on how
to set up your computer in order to use Canvas and how to use the various tools in
Canvas.
Software
The “Computer Setup” page provides information on the software you need for Canvas.
If you have questions on how to use Canvas contact the IT Service Desk at: (877) 8788325
Documents in this course will be presented in pdf format where possible. You will need
Adobe Reader to view these files, which you can obtain for free at:
http://get.adobe.com/reader/.
Written assignments should be submitted as a Microsoft Word document. If you do
not have Microsoft Word installed on your computer, you may use Open Office Writer
instead, which you can obtain for free at http://www.openoffice.org/.
Textbook
Unfortunately, legal textbooks are extremely expensive and I was unable to find one that
included all of the laws and policies we are discussing in the course. So, instead of asking
you to spend a small fortune on a few books, I have tried instead to find articles and legal
summaries I think will be as useful and informative as the legal textbooks I reviewed
(weekly reading assignments). Also, for those of you interested (though it is not
required), you can purchase booklets on the following topics from Shipley Group, the
private consulting firm USU partners with in doing the NEPA Certificate Program.
These booklets summarize the legal compliance for the following three laws:
Overview of the NEPA Process
Overview of the ESA Section 7 Consultation Process
Overview of the NHPA Section 106 Consultation Process
Please contact Jeff Steward (jeff.stewart@shipleygroup.com or 1-888-270-2157) if you
are interested in purchasing them.
Additional Readings
Weekly readings are a mixture of government documents, peer-reviewed journal articles,
and environmental law journals. Most readings will be available in Canvas in pdf format.
Other readings will be available online, with a hyperlink provided in Canvas.
Presentation Videos and Slides
Weekly online presentations are posted on Canvas. A video of the slides with my
narration can be accessed by connecting online to a media server (you will not need to
have a media player installed on your computer). The slides are also provided as a pdf
file which can be viewed on your computer, downloaded, and printed.
Applicable University Policies
Honor Pledge
Students will be held accountable to the Honor Pledge which they have agreed to: “I
pledge, on my honor, to conduct myself with the foremost level of academic integrity.”
Academic Dishonesty
The Instructor of this course will take appropriate actions in response to Academic
Dishonesty, as defined the University’s Student Code. Acts of academic dishonesty
include but are not limited to:
1. Cheating: (1) using or attempting to use or providing others with any unauthorized
assistance in taking quizzes, tests, examinations, or in any other academic exercise or
activity, including working in a group when the instructor has designated that the quiz,
test, examination, or any other academic exercise or activity be done “individually”; (2)
depending on the aid of sources beyond those authorized by the instructor in writing
papers, preparing reports, solving problems, or carrying out other assignments; (3)
substituting for another student, or permitting another student to substitute for oneself, in
taking an examination or preparing academic work; (4) acquiring tests or other academic
material belonging to a faculty member, staff member, or another student without express
permission; (5) continuing to write after time has been called on a quiz, test, examination,
or any other academic exercise or activity; (6) submitting substantially the same work for
credit in more than one class, except with prior approval of the instructor; or (7) engaging
in any form of research fraud.
2. Falsification: altering or fabricating any information or citation in an academic
exercise or activity.
3. Plagiarism: representing, by paraphrase or direct quotation, the published or
unpublished work of another person as one's own in any academic exercise or activity
without full and clear acknowledgment. It also includes using materials prepared by
another person or by an agency engaged in the sale of term papers or other academic
materials.
Full text of the Student Code available at available at available at
http://www.usu.edu/studentservices/pdf/StudentCode.pdf
Special Needs
Students with ADA-documented physical, sensory, emotional or medical impairments
may be eligible for reasonable accommodations. Veterans may also be eligible for
services. All accommodations are coordinated through the Disability Resource Center
(DRC) in Room 101 of the University Inn, (435)797-2444 voice, (435)797-0740 TTY,
(435)797-2444 VP, or toll free at 1-800-259-2966. Please contact the DRC as early in the
semester as possible. Alternate format materials (Braille, large print or digital) are
available with advance notice.