Louisiana remains at the forefront of environmental justice activity. In just four days from January 19 to January 23, 2024, two courts in Louisiana offered interpretations to environmental justice efforts in the State of...more
2/16/2024
/ Anti-Discrimination Policies ,
Appeals ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Clean Air Act ,
Department of Environmental Quality ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Louisiana ,
NAAQS ,
NGOs ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Spending Clause ,
Title VI
Environmental Justice: 2023 Year in Review and 2024 Look-Ahead -
As a concept, Environmental Justice, or EJ, has been around for more than 40 years. Beginning as a slogan at protests in Warren County, NC in 1982, EJ...more
12/21/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
CEQ ,
Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
NEPA ,
Proposed Rules ,
Toxic Chemicals
The gas stove wars continue to heat up. On April 17, 2023, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit took a stand and ruled that the City of Berkeley does not have the authority to prohibit connecting natural...more
Not a day seems to go by in recent weeks without multiple articles and media hits on controversies over gas stoves. Across the U.S., opponents of gas stoves have implemented a coordinated effort by government regulators,...more
2/27/2023
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Apartments ,
Clean Air Act ,
Commercial Buildings ,
Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Proposed Rules ,
Single Family Housing ,
State and Local Government
The EPA’s External Rights Compliance Office recently released Interim Environmental Justice and Civil Rights in Permitting Frequently Asked Questions (“the FAQ”). Stressing “that it is time to use the full extent of its...more
9/21/2022
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Civil Rights Act ,
Compliance Monitoring ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Review ,
NEPA ,
New Guidance ,
NGOs ,
Permits ,
Pollution Control ,
Title VI
On January 25, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) reaffirmed its interpretation of ethylene oxide (“EtO”) requirements which may signal EPA’s increased scrutiny of chemical emissions generally and the...more
On September 15, 2021, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) issued a Policy Statement instructing health app and connected device companies to comply with the Health Breach Notification Rule (“the Rule”). The Rule, codified...more
11/2/2021
/ Breach Notification Rule ,
Data Breach ,
Electronic Devices ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Final Rules ,
Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) ,
HIPAA Breach ,
Mobile Apps ,
PHI ,
Popular ,
Security Breach
Emphasis on Environmental Justice and Climate Change -
The EPA's draft Strategic Plan provides the key to understanding the agency's priority goals and initiatives, including Climate Change and Environmental Justice...more
10/21/2021
/ CERCLA ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
NEPA ,
RCRA ,
Safe Drinking Water Act ,
Site Remediation ,
Strategic Planning ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
Advancing Environmental Justice (“EJ”) is a central pillar of the Biden Administration. Beginning with President Biden’s Executive Order “Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad,” signed during his first week in...more
Historically, environmental issues have been front and center for major project development throughout the world. But for projects in the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) increased focus on the...more
8/23/2021
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Assessments ,
Environmental Impact Statements ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
FERC ,
Methane ,
Permits ,
Pipelines ,
US Army Corps of Engineers
On May 6, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (“EPA”) Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) published the results of an audit examining EPA’s response to updated cancer risk values for two chemicals: ethylene oxide...more
Environmental Tort Class Actions -
In what has become a near legal certainty following plant explosions, train wrecks with chemical spills, and other large-scale accidents, plaintiffs often file suit and seek to certify...more
In what has become a near legal certainty following plant explosions, train wrecks with chemical spills, and other large-scale accidents, plaintiffs often file suit and seek to certify personal injury and property damage...more
8/6/2020
/ Air Pollution ,
Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Commonality ,
Drinking Water ,
Medical Monitoring ,
PFAS ,
Pipelines ,
Property Damage ,
Reversal ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Underground Storage Tanks
Q: As I reopen my business, has COVID-19 impacted my business’s environmental, health and safety responsibilities?
A: Yes, COVID-19 has had a significant impact on companies’ environmental, health and safety obligations,...more
6/16/2020
/ Air Quality Standards ,
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Site Assessment ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Health and Safety ,
OSHA ,
Personal Protective Equipment ,
Social Distancing ,
Virus Testing ,
Workplace Safety
In a just-released air toxics rule for miscellaneous organic chemical manufacturing (“MON”) sources, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) retains its controversial risk value for ethylene oxide (“EtO”). In doing...more
Ethylene oxide (“EtO”), one of the most widely used and effective substances for sterilizing medical products and devices, has come under intense scrutiny by the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”), the Food and Drug...more