It’s well-known that the Trump administration has sought policies of deregulation over the past several years. The administration places emphasis on proper enforcement of existing rules and regulations as a means of achieving...more
1/13/2020
/ Administrative Procedure ,
Carbon Emissions ,
CERCLA ,
Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Environmental Quality ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Gas Prices ,
Obama Administration ,
PFAS ,
Renewable Energy ,
Risk Management ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Transportation Industry ,
Trump Administration ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waste Treatment Facilities ,
Wastewater ,
Waters of the United States
Some companies subjected to environmental enforcement or cleanup actions may believe others should take the blame or share in the costs. When environmental consultants have been involved, the finger can point in their...more
10/31/2019
/ CERCLA ,
Coal ,
Coal Ash ,
Coal Industry ,
Consultants ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Liability ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federalism ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Proposed Rules ,
Section 401 ,
Stormwater Discharge Permits
Some companies subjected to environmental enforcement or cleanup actions may believe others should take the blame or share in the costs. When environmental consultants have been involved, the finger can point in their...more
In 2016, EPA published the long-anticipated Hazardous Waste Generator Improvement Rule (HWGIR) updating requirements for generators of hazardous waste. The HWGIR also clarifies EPA polices governing accumulation of hazardous...more
A case currently pending before the United States Supreme Court may significantly impact legal rights of potentially responsible parties (PRPs) involved in the cleanup of Superfund Sites. The case was brought in Montana State...more
If your company is planning to buy commercial or industrial real estate, it’s probably your standard practice to have a Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (“Phase I”) performed. When you do so, it’s important to ensure the...more
6/7/2019
/ Air Pollution ,
BFPP ,
Cap-and-Trade ,
Carbon Emissions ,
CERCLA ,
Chesapeake Bay ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater Management Plan ,
Hazardous Waste Pharmaceuticals Rule ,
NGOs ,
Pollution Control Board ,
Real Estate Development ,
State Funding ,
TMDL
Certain pharmaceuticals are regulated under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) as “hazardous waste” when they are discarded. EPA recently finalized new management standards for hazardous waste pharmaceuticals...more
There are many benefits of corporate environmental auditing programs for companies large and small, not the least of which is the potential mitigation of civil penalties for violations of environmental laws discovered during...more
In January of 2018, the Virginia State Air Pollution Control Board (“Air Board”) published a proposed rule to establish a CO2 emissions cap and trade program in Virginia (the “Original Proposal”). The regulations set an...more
4/1/2019
/ Audits ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Drinking Water ,
Emissions Trading System ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Flooding ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Governor Northam ,
Landfills ,
PFAS ,
Pollution Control Board ,
Power Plants ,
RGGI ,
Storm Damage ,
Storm Water ,
Waste Management
EPA recently released a final regional office realignment plan in response to President Trump’s March 2017 Executive Order 13781. That order required EPA and other federal agencies to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and...more
12/20/2018
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Bureau of Land Management ,
CERCLA ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Deregulation ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
EPCRA ,
Farm Animals ,
Government Reorganization ,
Groundwater Management Plan ,
Oil & Gas ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) ,
Utilities Sector
EPA has announced a new compliance policy that some will view as providing welcome relief to industry and others may view as providing unwarranted concessions. The subject line of the EPA memo announcing the new policy is...more
10/3/2018
/ Adjacent Property Owners ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Clean Water Rule ,
Coal ,
Coal Ash ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Waste ,
New Guidance ,
RCRA ,
Sierra Club ,
Strategic Enforcement Plan ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) ,
Waters of the United States
EPA recently published guidance for companies preparing to submit new chemical notifications pursuant to the Toxic Substance Control Act (TSCA). The guidance, entitled Points to Consider When Preparing TSCA New Chemical...more
Manufacturers, importers and processors of chemical substances in the United States, know full well the regulatory burdens placed on their industry by the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). TSCA requirements can be...more
Dischargers of industrial wastewater face a complex and nuanced set of federal, state, and local regulations aimed at protecting the water bodies into which they discharge. Industries discharging to local Publicly Owned...more
New Source Review (“NSR”) remains a focus of enforcement for EPA. Between last year and now, EPA finalized eight settlements with manufacturers and one with a utility, asserting NSR violations for allegedly not obtaining a...more
5/3/2018
/ Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Groundwater Management Plan ,
Landfills ,
Manufacturers ,
Methane ,
Mining ,
NPDES ,
POTWs
Since 1995, EPA has followed a policy that any air emissions source that emits one or more hazardous air pollutants (“HAPs”) above major source emissions thresholds is always considered a major source of HAPs. This is so even...more
2/14/2018
/ Air Pollution ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Manufacturers ,
Pollution Control ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Title V
Manufacturers and large scale users of hazardous chemicals know the significance of March 1st. The Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know Act (EPCRA) requires facilities where hazardous chemicals were present above...more
A prominent characteristic of the Obama EPA was its close relationship with national environmental groups. The most controversial EPA rulemakings seemed to be the by-product of litigation settlements when environmental groups...more
Companies discharging industrial process wastewater often face challenging circumstances at their wastewater treatment facilities. Unexpected equipment malfunctions or system failures can lead to discharges that exceed...more
In April, 2015, EPA published in the Federal Register a final rule regulating the management and disposal of coal combustion residuals (CCR), commonly known as coal ash, from coal-fired power plants. Among other things, the...more
On the first anniversary of the Frank R. Launtenberg Chemical Safety for the 21st Century Act (also known as the TSCA Modernization Act of 2015), EPA promulgated three significant rules to implement the Act. The Act stands...more
EPA recently announced a 90-day stay for reconsideration of rules governing performance standards and emissions from Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Landfills. The final rules issued in July 2016 established new source...more
On June 1, 2017, President Trump announced that the United States will withdraw from the Paris climate agreement (“Paris Agreement”). The Paris Agreement was signed by 195 countries in December of 2015. The goal of the...more
7/10/2017
/ CERCLA ,
Clean Air Act ,
Energy Policy ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
EPCRA ,
Landfills ,
Methane ,
Paris Agreement ,
Pesticides ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Burden ,
Superfund ,
Trump Administration
The Clean Power Plan (“CPP”), and its companion new source review rule, is the Obama Administration’s signature regulation on reducing greenhouse gas emissions from power plants. Among other things, it requires states to put...more
5/17/2017
/ Agricultural Sector ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Liability ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Waste ,
NRDC ,
Presidential Memorandum ,
Trump Administration ,
Two For One Rule
Last month we discussed President Trump’s recent executive order entitled “Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs,” and the legal challenge that followed. The Order called for executive agencies to identify two...more