Robert B. McKinstry, Jr., a Ballard Spahr partner who is recognized worldwide for his work on climate change, will receive the Pennsylvania Bar Association Environment and Energy Law Section's 2010 Award for Distinguished Service to the Profession.
The award will be presented at the Environmental Law Forum in Harrisburg on April 22. It recognizes what the bar association section called Mr. McKinstry's "extensive academic and professional work and scholarship in the field of environmental law, climate change, and sustainable development."
Mr. McKinstry, partner-in-charge of the firm's Climate Change and Sustainability Initiative, has published books and addressed audiences worldwide. He is noted for his knowledge of climate change law, biodiversity and land conservation law, ecosystem restoration practices and federal lands, and wetlands regulation. Mr. McKinstry and fellow award recipient Professor John C. Dernbach submitted amicus briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court on behalf of leading climate-change scientists in Massachusetts v. EPA, in which the court reversed the EPA's refusal to regulate greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act.
Mr. McKinstry is vice chair of the ABA Section on Environmental, Energy and Resources' Committee on Climate Change, Sustainable Development, and Ecosystems. He chairs the Pennsylvania Environmental Resources Consortium's Climate Change and Energy Committee and serves on the boards of the Pennsylvania Environmental Council and the Pennsylvania Resources Council.
Mr. McKinstry is the co-founder of Ballard Spahr's Environmental Group, which represents clients in compliance, permitting, development, and contamination matters and in criminal and civil litigation. He also served for six years as the Maurice K. Goddard Chair in Forestry and Environmental Resources Conservation at the Pennsylvania State University, where he focused on market-based approaches to environmental regulation and the roles of government and business in addressing global environmental issues.
"Bobby continually impresses me with his intellectual command of key problems and potential solutions arising under environmental laws generally, and with respect to climate change in particular," said Glenn L. Unterberger, partner-in-charge of Ballard Spahr's Environmental Group. "These qualities, along with his ability to integrate technical, economic, and social considerations into his problem solving, make him a truly valuable environmental law practitioner and partner."
"I'm honored to receive this year's award, and I thank the bar association and my peers in the Environment and Energy Law Section for their work to make climate change and sustainability a top priority throughout the state and our profession," said Mr. McKinstry.