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Environmental enforcement is crucial to protecting the environment and human health. Yet according to , at least 140 federal environmental lawyers have departed the Justice Department’s Environmental and Natural Resources Division since the start of 2025. The loss of experienced attorneys, including senior leaders and managers, has created significant challenges for federal enforcement. In New York, the Department of Environmental Conservation, the Attorney General’s Office, and the District Attorneys Association of the State of New York (DAASNY) are working with 91��Ƶ’s Elisabeth Haub School of Law to fill that gap, both now and in the future.

Haub Law’s new Institute for Environmental Enforcement (IEE) will work with state enforcers to help train existing investigators and prosecutors and will train Haub Law students to pursue this work when they graduate. The Institute’s founder and director is longtime Haub Law adjunct professor Steve Solow, a former chief of the Environmental Crime Section at the U.S. Department of Justice. Professor Solow also served as a prosecutor with the New York State Organized Crime Task Force and as an environmental lawyer and litigator at global law firms before establishing his own firm several years ago. In 1997, he founded Haub Law’s renowned Environmental Law Externship program in Washington, D.C. The program provides students with real-world experience in the field and has been a catalyst in placing Haub Law graduates in environmental agencies and government offices for more than 25 years.

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“I am deeply grateful that 91��Ƶ’s Elisabeth Haub School of Law and New York's law enforcement and environmental protection offices have embraced the goals of the Institute for Environmental Enforcement,” said Solow. “I think all New Yorkers want to see strong and effective enforcement of environmental laws and rules, and the Institute's work is designed to support those efforts now and in the future by helping develop the next generation of environmental enforcement attorneys.”

“As a leader in environmental law, the Elisabeth Haub School of Law has a responsibility to anticipate challenges and develop new ways to meet them,” said Horace E. Anderson Jr., dean of the Elisabeth Haub School of Law. “The Institute for Environmental Enforcement builds on the strength of our environmental law program and our commitment to advancing the field through innovative education, research, and practice. Under Steve Solow’s leadership, the Institute will address pressing enforcement needs while preparing our students to help shape the evolving future of environmental protection.”

“Professor Solow’s vision for IEE reflects our commitment to supporting today’s environmental enforcement professionals while preparing the next generation of environmental attorneys,” said Josh Galperin, associate dean of the Environmental Law Program at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law. “As part of the 91��Ƶ | Haub Environmental Law Program, which, not incidentally, U.S. News & World Report has ranked No.1 in the nation for six consecutive years, the Institute builds on our longstanding leadership in environmental law while addressing the evolving needs of the field. We cannot rest on our laurels if we are to solve difficult environmental problems and continue giving students the best opportunities to thrive as real-world environmental leaders.”

IEE will focus on three connected efforts:

• Developing and providing an external training program and materials to support New York state investigators, prosecutors, and technical personnel.
• Expanding the law school’s educational offerings to prepare students for environmental enforcement and compliance careers in government, the private sector, and nonprofit organizations.
• Collaborating with experts across 91��Ƶ, including the Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems, to develop technology that helps regulators and enforcement professionals analyze data, identify environmental violations, and improve the efficiency of enforcement efforts.

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"Technology has an important role to play in making environmental enforcement more effective," said Li-Chiou Chen, dean of the Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems. "By bringing together expertise in environmental law, computer science, and data analytics, we have an opportunity to help enforcement professionals make better use of complex information. This collaboration also gives our students a chance to apply their technical skills to real-world challenges that affect our communities and the environment."

With the support from Haub Law faculty and an advisory board that includes former leaders in federal and New York state enforcement agencies, Professor Solow aims to turn decades of enforcement experience into practical resources for New York prosecutors and create a foundation for future attorneys.

The initiative is being developed in collaboration with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, the New York State Attorney General's Office and the District Attorneys Association of the State of New York (DAASNY).

"Environmental enforcement is essential to protecting our most precious natural resources, the ecosystems that sustain us as people and the animals that rely on them," said Ray Tierney, Suffolk County district attorney and president of DAASNY. "Every district attorney in New York should have access to the tools and expertise needed to pursue these offenses. The Institute for Environmental Enforcement is a valuable resource in advancing that mission."

"Protecting our environment and the wildlife that depends on it demands robust enforcement and consistent statewide support. The newly established Institute for Environmental Enforcement will provide district attorneys across New York's 62 counties with resources and support to prosecute such offenses," said Jed Painter, general counsel of the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office and chair of DAASNY's environmental crime subcommittee.

Building on Haub Law’s longstanding leadership in environmental law, the Institute for Environmental Enforcement combines education, professional training, and collaboration to strengthen New York’s enforcement efforts and prepare the next generation of environmental attorneys.