Last week, we posted about New York State’s enactment of the Climate Change Superfund Act. We promised to continue to monitor developments concerning climate superfund legislation and to update readers as necessary. It’s been...more
1/14/2025
/ California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
CERCLA ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Public Health ,
State and Local Government
Last week, EPA released two final rules under TSCA. The first rule bans all uses of trichloroethylene (TCE). The ban is subject to several temporary exemptions for certain uses under § 6(g) of TSCA. The second rule bans...more
12/12/2024
/ CERCLA ,
Chemicals ,
Contaminated Properties ,
Contamination ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Final Rules ,
Groundwater ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
For most of this century, I’ve been asked with some regularity whether Superfund was dead. I’ve always considered that question to be a victory of hope over expectation. Notwithstanding frequent criticism, frequently...more
Last week, Vermont became the first state to enact a “Climate Superfund” law. As I noted in January, I fear that this will not end well. It seems odd to model a statute on a law frequently given the accolade – deserved, in my...more
Last Friday, EPA formally designated perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) – including their salts and structural isomers! – as hazardous substances under CERCLA. I cannot really quarrel with...more
4/23/2024
/ CERCLA ,
Contamination ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Final Rules ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Superfund
This week, Inside EPA (subscription required) ran a story indicating that EPA is trying to figure out how to juggle some increasingly expensive cleanups with shortfalls in Superfund tax revenue. The story notes that EPA is...more
It is now almost 18 months since Congress enacted the Inflation Reduction Act. One of the IRA’s provisions was an adder to the ITC for renewable energy projects located in an “energy community”. One way to be in an energy...more
2/12/2024
/ Brownfield Properties ,
CERCLA ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
IRS ,
Legislative Agendas ,
RCRA ,
Renewable Energy ,
Superfund ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
As I’ve noted many times, criticizing CERCLA is like shooting fish in a barrel. Apparently, however, my criticism is not universally shared. According to WBUR, some legislators around the country are so pleased with how...more
Last week, Inside EPA (subscription required) reported that EPA will reopen CERCLA cleanups due to the presence of PFAS on a case-by-case basis. The article reported on the gnashing of teeth among the regulated community at...more
11/7/2023
/ CERCLA ,
Contaminated Properties ,
Contamination ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
PFAS ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Superfund ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Exposure
Late last month, in Munoz v. Intercontinental Terminals Company, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals held that the liability provisions of CERCLA and the Oil Pollution Act do not overlap and that, consequently, where oil and...more
On March 14, 2023, EPA proposed to regulate certain PFAS under the Safe Drinking Water Act. EPA proposed Maximum Contaminant Level Goals for PFOA and PFOS of zero. It proposed Maximum Contaminant Levels for PFOA and PFOS of...more
3/16/2023
/ CERCLA ,
Clean Water Act ,
Contamination ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
PFAS ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Safe Drinking Water Act ,
Superfund ,
Toxic Chemicals
Earlier this month, United States District Court Judge Stephen Wilson held that NL Industries was not liable under CERCLA for air emissions of lead because such emissions did not constitute “disposal” within the meaning of...more
Last week, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals granted a writ of mandamus to the Center for Biological Diversity, imposing a deadline on EPA to issue an “effects determination” concerning the potential impacts of the pesticide...more
Environment and Energy Report (subscription required) had a story today about growing opposition to EPA’s proposal to list two PFAS compounds, PFOA and PFOS, as hazardous substances under CERCLA. Here’s what really caught my...more
Tucked away in the recesses of the Inflation Reduction Act is a provision that reminds everyone why they love Superfund so much. On its face, it’s simply an incentive for renewable energy development, giving an adder to the...more
9/1/2022
/ Brownfield Properties ,
CERCLA ,
Clean Energy ,
Energy Projects ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Investment Tax Credits ,
New Legislation ,
Renewable Energy ,
Settlement ,
Superfund ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
EPA announced today that it is proposing to list PFOA and PFAS as hazardous substances under CERCLA. EPA appears to be sanguine about how the listing will play out in the real world. EPA is focused on holding responsible...more
Last month, EPA issued interim health advisories for PFOA and PFOS that took many people’s breath away. It is rather amazing how quickly we’ve moved from parts per billion past parts per trillion to the low parts per...more
Just when we environmental old-timers were just getting used to talk about PFAS concentrations in the low parts per trillion range, EPA has moved us squarely into uncharted territory. EPA has released new, interim, lifetime...more
On May 25th, Massachusetts filed suit against a number of companies alleged to have manufactured PFAS and/or aqueous film-forming foam. Massachusetts joins a number of other states which have already brought similar...more
The news about PFAS keeps piling up, and the trend is pretty clear – none of it is good for manufacturers and significant users. There were two important items this week.
First, EPA published its human health toxicity...more
Earlier this month, EPA circulated a memorandum on “Strengthening Environmental Justice Through Cleanup Enforcement Actions.” It could significantly increase the volume of CERCLA enforcement actions. More importantly, if...more
Yesterday, the Supreme Court ruled that only settlements that explicitly resolve liability under CERCLA trigger the contribution provisions of section 113 of CERCLA. I have previously commented on the Court’s tendency to...more
Last week, Environmental Science: Processes and Impacts released a study titled “The high persistence of PFAS is sufficient for their management as a chemical class.” The title is one of the two big takeaways from the...more
I have previously discussed how nice it must be for Supreme Court justices to reach judicial decisions from on high, without getting their collective hands dirty worrying about the practical consequences of their decisions. ...more
Some cases just make you wonder what people were thinking. I’m not even sure Donald Trump would have tried to get away with what Dico, Inc., tried to get away with.
In 1994, EPA issued an administrative order, requiring...more
4/15/2019
/ Administrative Orders ,
Appeals ,
Buyers ,
CERCLA ,
Contamination ,
Cost Recovery ,
Demolition ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Violations ,
PCBs ,
Punitive Damages ,
Real Estate Transactions ,
Sellers ,
Treble Damages