Business Better Podcast Episode: An Update on Environmental Justice Under the Biden Administration
On-Demand Webinar | Planning and Funding Climate Resilient California Coastal Infrastructure
Natural Resource Damages & Environmental Justice
Drinking Water on Tap: Money, Morality, and More with Tracy Mehan from the American Water Works Association - Reflections on Water Podcast
Williams Mullen Manufacturing Edge: Environmental Enforcement in the Current Regulatory Climate
On-Demand Webinar | Linear Infrastructure Redux: Adapting Your Projects to Meet the New Regulatory Climate
Four years ago, President Biden ran on an ambitious climate action agenda and the Biden/Harris Administration, from the first day in office, has a laser focus on tackling the “climate crisis,” On January 27, 2021, the...more
The regulated community faces a complex and evolving landscape. As we head into 2024, our team of energy, environmental, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) attorneys provide insights and guidance on how to...more
Though environmental justice (EJ) has been a cornerstone of the Biden Administration, it lacks federal enforcement laws. Executive orders and responses from federal agencies have shaped U.S. enforcement of EJ issues....more
In the United States, environmental and public health measures often correlate to variables like education, income, and a community’s racial makeup. In the five decades since Congress began to create comprehensive...more
Companies are facing increased federal, state, and public scrutiny regarding environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues. Amidst this momentum, it is important for companies operating in all sectors to address ESG...more
President Biden is pushing in 2023 to strengthen Environmental Justice (EJ) initiatives and policies from the top down. This includes ordering more action and results from relevant federal agencies and pushing for the use of...more
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) published in the January 12th Federal Register a Request for Public Comment on the National Enforcement and Compliance Initiatives (“NECIs”) it is proposing for fiscal...more
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced it is seeking public comment on its proposal to address environmental justice, climate change and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination in its National...more
The Environmental Protection Agency recently published a Cumulative Impacts Addendum (“Addendum”) to its Legal Tools to Advance Environmental Justice (“EJ Legal Tools”), issued in May 2022....more
What will happen in the environmental and energy space in 2023? The last year saw transformative changes in the environmental and energy space in the form of historic spending through the federal Inflation Reduction Act, a...more
In a recent US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) letter issued to the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) and the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH), the Biden Administration deploys its plans to use...more
As we move toward two full years of the Biden Administration, we can see the US Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) environmental justice (EJ) efforts move from the creation of new offices and guidance materials toward...more
The proposed EPA rule designating PFOA and PFOS as hazardous substances under CERCLA has significant implications for Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs) at both current and closed Superfund sites, as well as for companies...more
Environmental justice (EJ) issues continue to be at the forefront of the Biden Administration’s regulatory agenda, with promises to deploy non-environmental statutes - most notably, federal civil rights laws - to address...more
The public’s attention to environmental justice has refocused the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on cumulative assessment of risk and impacts. Concordantly, EPA recently finalized its Fiscal Year 2022–2026...more
On January 5, 2022, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued its Draft Environmental Justice Action Plan (Draft EJ Action Plan), which identifies Environmental Justice (EJ) measures that have been or...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
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
The Comprehensive Response Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA or “Superfund”) imposes strict, joint and several liability on responsible parties for remediation of contaminated properties. As compared to other federal...more
The updated model of the remedial design/remedial action consent decree and statement of work seeks to streamline and quicken CERCLA settlement negotiations and address environmental justice concerns of Superfund sites in...more
Recent guidance issued by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) evidences EPA’s intention to better incorporate Environmental Justice (“EJ”) considerations into program administration and enforcement. ...more
On July 1, 2021, EPA’s Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (OECA) issued a memorandum to all EPA Regional Offices urging the offices to increase cleanup program enforcement under the Comprehensive Environmental...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
For the second time in as many weeks, the acting head of the EPA’s enforcement office has issued a memorandum (the “Memorandum”) outlining additional actions to advance the EPA’s environmental justice (“EJ”) goals...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (“USEPA”) Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance (“OECA”) released July 1, 2021 guidance establishing a process on which it will rely upon to advance its’ Environment Justice...more