Natural Resource Damages & Environmental Justice
Environmental Agencies, Superfund Cleanups, and Managing Enforcement Actions
What are PFAS and Why Should We Care?
Volatile Times in Vapor Intrusion Regulation: A Legal and Technical Update
The Georgia Brownfield Association (GBA) held its 10th annual Brownfield Seminar on April 9th, bringing together leaders from the legal, engineering, and government sectors who share an interest in furthering the...more
Because the courts have interpreted the 1980 Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), 42 U.S.C. § 9601 et seq., as a strict liability statute holding owners in the chain of title liable...more
Communities and developers now have the opportunity to tap into certain funds earmarked by the state specifically for brownfield redevelopment and to take advantage of certain incentive programs that apply to more brownfield...more
While some developers are dragged reluctantly into redeveloping brownfields, others actively pursue these environmentally impacted properties in recognition of the advantages they can provide under the right circumstances....more
Today Governor Maura Healy signed legislation extending the eligibility deadlines for the Massachusetts Brownfields tax credits program by five years. The legislation had been included in the budget bill, which had recently...more
This week a bill was introduced in the Alabama Legislature which would expand the state’s Brownfield Redevelopment and Voluntary Cleanup Program through the implementation of new features aimed to increase participation in...more
Virginia’s Department of Environmental Quality (“VDEQ”) announced via its email newsletter that it will resume issuance of Bona Fide Prospective Purchase (“BFPP”) and other “Comfort Letters” beginning September 1, 2022. This...more
The exact number of brownfield sites in the United States is not known. Some sources estimate the number at more than 450,000, amounting to more than five million total acres of land. One report estimated that U.S. cities...more
When New York Governor Kathy Hochul executed the 2022-2023 State Budget, it included a 10-year extension to the State’s Brownfield Cleanup Program (“BCP” or “Program). The State’s voluntary, incentive-laced, BCP was set to...more
Ohio recently announced the first round of grant awards for the state’s Brownfield Remediation Program. Ohio dedicated nearly $350 million for the program administered by the Ohio Department of Development through the 2021...more
Revitalizing Brownfields has long been considered a centerpiece for community efforts to encourage growth and development of properties impacted by contamination. In 2021, Oregon’s Legislature passed HB 2518, which seeks to...more
Gov. Kathy Hochul released proposed amendments to both the Brownfield Cleanup Program (BCP) and the Brownfield Opportunity Area (BOA) Program this week, in connection with her FY 2023 Executive Budget proposal. The proposal...more
On December 1, 2021, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (“VDEQ”) announced via a notice on its Brownfields website that it stopped accepting applications for Bona Fide Prospective Purchase (“BFPP”) and other...more
The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (VDEQ) has just given notice on its website that, effective immediately, it has stopped issuing so-called “comfort letters” as part of its brownfield program. Such comfort...more
Following the enactment of the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (H.R. 3684) and its signing into law by President Joseph R. Biden this month, significantly expanded federal funding and emphasis is expected in...more
In a bid to rehabilitate the Brownfields Tax Credit ("BTC") application and approval process, the Massachusetts Department of Revenue ("DOR") has issued final regulations (830 CMR 63.38Q.1) and new administrative procedures...more
The Massachusetts Department of Revenue (DOR) issued final regulations effective July 9, 2021 (the Regulations) that are intended to aid in the implementation of the Massachusetts Brownfields Tax Credits program, which was...more
The Connecticut Brownfields Initiative of the University of Connecticut recently announced the release of a Request for Proposals for its Municipal Assistance Program starting in the fall of 2021. The Municipal Assistance...more
Governor Cuomo’s FY 2022 Budget provides relief to participants in the New York State Brownfield Cleanup Program (BCP) that risk losing their Tangible Property Tax Credit due to pandemic-related and other delays....more
The federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (“CERCLA”), also known as the Superfund law, has been used successfully to clean up abandoned industrial sites across the country....more
The Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management (DEM) announced today that $3 million is available in new funding opportunities for the cleanup and redevelopment of contaminated properties all across Rhode Island,...more
After years in the making behind closed doors, on February 14, 2020, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC), the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board and the California State Water...more
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) recently announced that it has developed a new template agreement for use under Tennessee's Voluntary Cleanup Oversite and Assistance Program, Tennessee Code...more
On July 8, 2019 the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (“DEEP”) proposed an overhaul to its Remediation Standard Regulations (“RSRs”). These proposed amendments, often referred to as “Wave 2, ” will...more