U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) has designated PFOA and PFOS as "Hazardous Substances" under CERCLA, marking the agency's first use of Section 102(a) authority and signaling potential widespread industry impact...more
The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) finalized a suite of final rules aimed at reducing contamination, emissions, and discharges from coal- and gas-fired power plants on April 25. This suite of rules includes two...more
As our readers are likely familiar from our past blog posts here, here and here, in September 2022, EPA proposed to designate PFOA and PFOS as hazardous substances under section 102(a) of Comprehensive Environmental Response,...more
Massachusetts residents and businesses dispose of enough trash yearly to fill up about 31 Fenway Parks. Despite decades of government policies to reduce waste, we continue throwing away about six million tons of waste each...more
Global political and business leaders have purported ambitious climate-focused goals for the decades ahead, such as eliminating landfill waste by 2030, transitioning to 100% renewable energy use by 2035, and achieving...more
As previously noted in April 18th and April 19th blog posts, the Mayor of Tontitown and certain individuals filed separate (two) Requests for Adjudicatory Hearing and Commission Review (collectively, “Petitions”) before the...more
A bill amending the Alabama Solid Wastes and Recyclable Materials Management Act by specifying when local approval of solid waste disposal permit modifications is necessary has passed both houses of the Alabama Legislature...more
A 2022 Interagency Sea Level Rise Technical Report, authored by various governmental agencies, found that global mean sea levels could rise between one and seven feet by 2100. This would me significant impacts to the more...more
Maine wastewater treatment plants are currently facing intense challenges concerning disposal of their sewage sludge, also called “biosolids.” This is a fast-moving issue getting significant coverage in the media and...more
Just before the start of the year, the European Commission introduced a Proposal for a Regulation on Packaging and Packaging Waste (PPWR) which will repeal the existing Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD) and...more
In 2015, California’s former governor Edmund Brown Jr. set methane emissions-reduction targets for the state. Senate Bill 1383 requires that California reduce organic waste disposal 75 percent by the year 2025. Although most...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently issued the Effluent Guidelines Program Plan 15 to address the widespread “forever chemicals,” known as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), found in water, air,...more
For the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (“NYSDEC” or “Department”), discretion has been the better part of valor when considering enforcement of certain provisions of the Revised Part 360 Solid Waste...more
Several environmental organizations have sued the U.S. EPA in an attempt to force the agency to revise its coal ash rules to include inactive, coal ash landfills. Currently inactive, coal ash landfills are exempt from the...more
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reverses changes to Endangered Species Act’s habitat rule - Associated Press - July 20 - The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) on Wednesday canceled a Trump administration policy...more
The United States District Court for the District of Texas (“Court”) addressed in an August 4th Opinion issues arising out of a solid waste storage and recycling facility/shingle pile in Dallas, Texas. See Marsha Jackson v....more
United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) Administrator Michael Regan announced on October 18th what is described as a “Comprehensive National Strategy to Confront PFAS Pollution” (“Strategy”). The Strategy...more
I undertook an Arkansas Environmental Federation webinar held by the organization’s Land and Sustainability Committee on May 20th titled: Solid and Hazardous Waste/Recycling Administrative/Judicial Developments: 2020-2021...more
On May 24, 2021, in an opinion written by Justice Thomas, a unanimous Supreme Court ruled that Guam’s lawsuit against the US Navy was not barred by CERCLA, thus restoring the Territory’s claim for recovery of costs to...more
President Biden has made environmental justice a cornerstone of his administration. While all government departments and agencies have a role to play, the U.S. EPA has taken on the environmental justice mantle as reflected in...more
Summary - The Pennsylvania legislature is close to enacting House Bill 1808. Already approved by the Pennsylvania House, the measure could benefit an emerging industry known as Advanced Recycling that diverts single-use...more
Trade groups sue California to stop threatened species listing for Western Joshua Tree - Bullet Desert Sun – October 27 - Several trade groups and a high desert town sued in Fresno County Superior Court on October 21 over...more
When roads heat up during the summer, the asphalt poisons urban air - Fast Company – September 8 - In the summer, dark asphalt roads and roofs absorb heat from the sun and then put it back into the air, which is...more
The United States District Court for the Southern District of Alabama (“Court”) in a February 21st Order addressed a dispute involving a waste disposal contract. See WM Mobile Bay Envtl. Ctr., Inc. v. City of Mobile, No. CV...more
The Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment – Division of Environmental Quality (“DEQ”) has issued a new edition (January 2020) of its quarterly newsletter. DEQ describes the newsletter as providing...more