Meagan Niebler
Electric Utilities, Private Equity, and Your ...

Electricity bills around the United States are skyrocketing. (CNN). In Pennsylvania, household electricity prices have shot up nearly 50 percent over the past five years. (Inside Climate News). Ratepayers in Ohio and West Virginia have also experienced dramatic price increases. Low and middle-income households have had a hard time keeping up. (Pa. Capital-Star).  In 2025, nearly 290,000 Pennsylvania households had their electric service disconnected for falling behind on their payments — a 14 percent increase from 2024. (Pa. PUC). 

Losing electric service can harm physical and mental health. (ABC News).  In the most extreme cases, disconnection can result in homelessness or death. (Nature). To “keep the lights on,” families may forgo food, medicine, child care, and other basic needs. (Pa. Capital-Star).  

Given the stakes, it’s important to understand how electricity prices are set, why costs are going up, and, most importantly, what we can do about it. 

Electric Utilities, Private Equity, and Your Bills
Meagan Niebler
"Who would listen?"  A story about living ...

When I moved to Virginia after college in 2016, I wanted a quiet neighborhood to call home, close to work and family. After the data center arrived, everything changed. I can’t bring myself to leave, even though I no longer see myself starting a family here. Over the past decade, I’ve built a support network, advanced my career, and remained close to relatives who depend on me. Every weekend, I watch my nephews, who go to the local elementary school just down the road. They notice the changes too, though they cannot comprehend their implications. Now, I feel stuck and unsure what to do.

"Who would listen?"  A story about living near a data center.
Beyond the Courtroom
Meagan Niebler
Celebrating Black History Month

Environmental justice exists because Black communities have always organized for clean air, safe water, healthy homes, and dignity. From fighting toxic dumping to defending land, housing, and public health, Black environmentalists have shaped the movement—often without recognition. We must thank Black leaders for addressing the interconnection between civil rights, labor safety, housing, and environmental health—their advocacy continues to shape how environmental law understands equity, participation, and accountability today. 

Check out this blog for some fun resources, including a zine to print and share with your community!

Celebrating Black History Month
Meagan Niebler
Rezoning - What Is It and How You Can Have a ...

Residents throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia, are raising the alarm as new data centers, warehouses, and industrial facilities move in rapidly leading to public concerns surrounding noise, water, and power-usage. How is this happening so fast? Too often, municipalities approve these developments through quiet but completely legal rezoning processes. Many communities are left wondering: Can zoning rules really be changed that easily? Why don't we know about it? How can we get involved before final decisions are made? How does this work, and is there anything I can do about it? 


Here's how the zoning process works, how municipalities change their zoning maps and codes, what the legal requirements are, and how you can better advocate to protect your community from these unwanted changes. 

Rezoning - What Is It and How You Can Have a Voice in the Process
Brooke Christy
Ohioans and Environmental Organizations File ...

In H.B. 96, the Ohio General Assembly snuck anti-environment provisions into the bill at the last minute that removed important protections for Ohioans who want to file complaints against polluters while also invalidating community air monitoring data. These statutory changes have no relationship to Ohio’s budget and thus violate the Ohio Constitution’s requirement that all legislation include only one subject.

Ohioans and Environmental Organizations File Lawsuit Challenging Constitutionality of Air Pollution Amendment in State Budget

Who is Responsible for Ensuring Drinking Water at Schools and Child Care Centers are Lead Free?

Who is Responsible for Ensuring Drinking Water at Schools and Child Care Centers are Lead Free?

For over a century, our governments failed to regulate lead as it entered almost every facet of our consumer market and infrastructure. Despite long-standing knowledge of the risk of lead poisoning, lead was used for its versatility and low-cost. New studies estimate that at least half of the United States population was exposed to adverse lead levels during early childhood. While statutes and regulations have been put in place to prevent the continued use of lead in infrastructure and some products, few hold anyone responsible for affirmatively removing lead hazards. 

24 Black Environmentalists to Know in 2024

24 Black Environmentalists to Know in 2024

Fair Shake Environmental Legal Services would like to highlight these twenty-four champions of the environment in honor of Black History Month 2024. As an organization dedicated to uplifting the voices of underserved communities, Fair Shake celebrates their contributions to the fight for environmental justice and conservation. Whether new to the fight for our environment like youth animal rights activist Genesis Butler or a cornerstone of the movement for decades like Dr. Robert Bullard, these advocates inspire us to live in harmony with our planet and to fiercely protect the places where we live, work, and play.

It’s Time to Face the Music: Harms of Noise Pollution and the EPA’s Ineffective Regulation

It’s Time to Face the Music: Harms of Noise Pollution and the EPA’s Ineffective Regulation

While noise pollution poses a substantial threat to human health and the environment, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) charged with regulating it has been largely inactive under its Congressional authority to do so within the Noise Control Act of 1972 (NCA). Under the NCA, the EPA is given the authority to identify and regulate products that are “major sources” of noise. The NCA also leaves the primary responsibility of noise control to state and local governments, while recognizing that federal action is needed for major noise sources in commerce.

West Virginia Zoning Case's Potential Impact on Local Control of Oil and Gas Activities

West Virginia Zoning Case's Potential Impact on Local Control of Oil and Gas Activities

SWN Production Company, LLC, a Texas-based natural gas developer, is appealing a West Virginia circuit court decision upholding local zoning laws’ ability to limit the location of oil and gas activities. The appeal’s outcome may greatly affect the ability of local governments to control oil and gas activities in their communities.

FAIR SHAKE BRINGS ON NEW LAWYER TO EXPAND SERVICES FOR COMMUNITIES WITH LEAD EXPOSURE

FAIR SHAKE BRINGS ON NEW LAWYER TO EXPAND SERVICES FOR COMMUNITIES WITH LEAD EXPOSURE

Fair Shake Environmental Legal Services has provided assistance to communities experiencing lead exposure for over seven years. While the mission of Fair Shake is to foster equal access to environmental justice in the Appalachian Region, the variation of laws governing lead between state and local jurisdictions have been a barrier to the expansion of services for lead exposure. That is why Fair Shake is excited to announce that Brooke Christy, a recent Pitt Law graduate, has joined Fair Shake’s staff as an Equal Justice Works Fellow dedicated to specializing in lead exposure.

Pleasants Power Station - Potential Permits and Approvals Needed for Pyrolysis Plans

Pleasants Power Station - Potential Permits and Approvals Needed for Pyrolysis Plans

Omnis has not announced a timeline for its proposed facility. However, Omnis will undoubtedly need to apply for permits with West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (DEP). To date there has been nothing filed of record.  The very first step Omnis will need to take will be to immediately file for Change of Ownership on the existing permits to continue operations of the coal fired plant.  

THE SHELL CONSENT ORDER – WHAT HAPPENED, WHAT DOES IT MEAN, AND WHAT COMES NEXT?

THE SHELL CONSENT ORDER – WHAT HAPPENED, WHAT DOES IT MEAN, AND WHAT COMES NEXT?

A consent order is an agreement between an administrative agency like the Department of Environmental Protection and a private party such as Shell that can be used to enforce the agency’s rules. In this case, the Department of Environmental Protection has ordered Shell to lower their emissions and comply with their original Plan Approval, and Shell has agreed to the Department’s terms by signing it as well. The consent order adds several new mandatory monitoring and reporting requirements for Shell as the facility resumes operations. Shell will be required to do additional modeling of the malfunctioning flares, monthly reporting of the facility’s emissions, and details of their plans for making repairs.

Proposed Aliquippa Steel Manufacturing Plant - What You Need To Know

Proposed Aliquippa Steel Manufacturing Plant - What You Need To Know

Since 72 Steel is still in its initial stages of development, there are plenty of opportunities for public participation in both the local and state permitting processes. As listed above, some of these actions include making a written or oral public comment or challenging approvals in the proper court or tribunal. Participating in these types of actions helps ensure the public’s wishes and concerns are heard with the new industrial development in the Aliquippa area.

Sackett versus the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

Sackett versus the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)

On May 25th, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a 5-4 decision on Sackett v. EPA, No. 21-454. This case follows the recent Supreme Court’s trend loosening environmental protection laws and weakening agency power. Here, the Court’s ruling will shrink the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s jurisdiction to enforce the Clean Water Act (CWA), by limiting regulatory authority to wetlands only if they have a continuous surface water connection to navigable waters such that they are indistinguishable from these bodies of water.

Battle RGGI: How the carbon emissions program has highlighted Pennsylvania’s political strife over environmental issues.

Battle RGGI: How the carbon emissions program has highlighted Pennsylvania’s political strife over environmental issues.

The question at issue is whether Gov. Wolf can enter RGGI through executive order - something that RGGI opponents staunchly deny. They argue that Gov. Wolf’s order undermines the legislature’s exclusive authority to impose taxes and enter interstate agreements. As an energy powerhouse, Pennsylvania’s entrance would significantly strengthen RGGI and become a  “political litmus test” for carbon pricing programs. RGGI would arguably be the most significant step Pennsylvania has ever taken to address climate change, and the battle over it has brought political tensions around environmental issues to the forefront.  

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