David Pierce
Energy & Environment
Energy & Environment contains the interviews of individuals who were involved with the development and implementation of state energy and environmental policy from the 1970s through the early decades of the 2000s. The interviews elicit insights about the policy-making process, the assignment of priorities, and the give-and-take involved in reaching final policy decisions. Of special interest are instances in which Kansas developed singular solutions and means for implementing them. To explore this collection and others, visit the Kansas Oral History Project home page: https://ksoralhistory.org/
After a 33-year teaching career at Washburn University’s School of Law, in 2020 David Pierce retired as emeritus Professor of Law and Norman R. Pozez Chair in Business and Transactional Law. Professor Pierce’s teaching and scholarship focused on oil and gas law, energy law, and environmental law, with an emphasis on Kansas law and policy. He also devoted substantial time to teaching these subjects to practicing lawyers. Professor Pierce received his BA degree from Kansas State College of Pittsburg (1974), his JD from Washburn University School of Law (1977), and his Master of Law (LL.M.--Energy Law) from the University of Utah College of Law (1982). After graduating from Washburn, he worked as a solo practitioner in Neodesha, Kansas, and as the City Attorney for Cherryvale, Kansas. Upon completing his LL.M. degree, he worked in-house for Shell Oil Company in Houston, Texas. He left Shell for his first tenure-track teaching job at Indiana University in Indianapolis, Indiana. Following a visiting professorship at Washburn, he joined the University of Tulsa College of Law where he taught until returning to Washburn. Professor Pierce also served, at various times, in an Of Counsel capacity to the Gable & Gotwals firm in Tulsa, Oklahoma and the Shughart Thomson & Kilroy firm in Kansas City, Missouri.
Retired Professor David Pierce recalls how he became interested in environmental policy and in oil and gas law. After starting his career, this native Kansan returned to the state where it was easy to do business in the oil and gas industry. In this interview, Pierce identified several factors that contribute to the positive business atmosphere, including land ownership patterns, the location of Kansas' oil and gas resources, and a general attitude that regulation is a means by which reasonable resource extraction is facilitated. He identifies two areas where solutions need to be identified: one old issue, in the eastern part of the state where unplugged wells continue to be a problem; and the other a newer issue of increased seismic activity associated with new drilling techniques. Pierce also reviews several of the key federal and state laws and court decisions that have shaped the nexus of energy and environmental policy in the oil and gas industry.
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