ENVR 210 | Fundamentals of U.S. Environmental Law and Policy

This course provides a basic introduction to environmental policymaking in the U.S. system of government, which includes the processes by which laws, rules and regulations, agency guidelines, court decisions, and international agreements are established. The course explores several major areas of environmental concern. For each area, the class considers the human environmental impacts of concern, the political and policy history causing and addressing the concern, the way in which the current policies in this area work at various levels of government, and the way in which new legal interpretations and other forms of policy change might develop. Special attention is given to the way in which policy affects local and regional environmental issues here in the Pacific Northwest. Field trips and guest speakers are often incorporated into this class.