President Joe Biden issued a series of executive orders on January 27 to further confront the “existential threat” of climate change, to reaffirm the executive branch’s commitment to evidence-based policymaking and...more
The US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit held that EPA’s interpretation that emissions controls under Section 111 of the Clean Air Act must be limited to those that can be applied “at” and “to” a stationary source was...more
As the 46th president of the United States, Joe Biden took significant steps on his first day in office to advance the energy and climate initiatives of his administration. This LawFlash provides a brief summary of several...more
1/22/2021
/ Arctic Drilling ,
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge ,
Biden Administration ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Reform ,
Fuel Efficiency ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Keystone XL Pipeline ,
Native American Issues ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Paris Agreement ,
Tribal Lands
Immediately following his inauguration on January 20, US President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. began taking executive action to enact many of his administration’s initial priorities, which included a number of executive orders,...more
1/22/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Corporate Counsel ,
DACA ,
Eviction ,
Executive Orders ,
Foreclosure ,
Infectious Diseases ,
LGBTQ ,
Masks ,
Moratorium ,
Muslims ,
Paris Agreement ,
Regulatory Freeze ,
Regulatory Mandates ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Travel Ban ,
Workplace Safety
Draft guidance from the US Environmental Protection Agency provides a clearer look at how the agency intends to apply the US Supreme Court's "functional equivalent" analysis to determine when National Pollutant Discharge...more
12/15/2020
/ Appeals ,
Clean Water Act ,
Direct Discharge ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Functional Equivalent ,
Groundwater ,
Hawaii Wildlife Fund v County of Maui ,
Navigable Waters ,
NPDES ,
Permits ,
Point Sources ,
Remand ,
SCOTUS ,
Vacated ,
Waters of the United States
Deferring to the US Environmental Protection Agency, the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit rejected a challenge to the first-ever listing of a site on the Superfund National Priorities List under recent regulatory...more
Multiple environmental groups, including the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Conservation Law Foundation, and Defenders of Wildlife, have sued the US Environmental Protection Agency and US Army Corps of Engineers over...more
In rejecting guidance from the US Environmental Protection Agency, the Supreme Court concluded that a discharge to groundwater that reaches navigable waters is subject to the permitting requirements of the Clean Water Act if...more
4/27/2020
/ Appeals ,
Clean Water Act ,
Direct Discharge ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Functional Equivalent ,
Groundwater ,
Hawaii Wildlife Fund v County of Maui ,
Navigable Waters ,
NPDES ,
Permits ,
Point Sources ,
Remand ,
SCOTUS ,
Vacated ,
Waters of the United States
The US Supreme Court held that CERCLA does not preempt state law restoration claims by landowners who are potentially responsible parties, but clarifies that the Environmental Protection Agency must approve landowners’...more
The US Supreme Court declined to review an appeals court decision holding that the one-year clock for states to issue a certification under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act for a federal permit does not reset if...more
The solicitor general‘s support for a grant of certiorari increases the likelihood the Court will address whether the Clean Water Act is violated by releases of pollutants to groundwater that subsequently enter a “water of...more
The US Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers’ joint proposed definition of “waters of the United States” would eliminate the regulation of waters with a “significant nexus” to certain other covered...more
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed the Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) rule on August 21. The proposed rule would replace the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan, establishing alternative guidelines for...more
The decision could delay the resolution of challenges to the US Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean Water Act regulations and may result in conflicting interpretations from different federal district courts. ...more
The proposed reforms seek to accelerate cleanup and reuse of sites to reduce risks, reduce costs, and hasten redevelopment....more
The executive order asks agencies to repeal or revise an Obama-era rule defining the scope of the Clean Water Act and recommends adoption of a narrower standard articulated by the late Justice Scalia....more
A unanimous panel held that Asarco’s settlement in bankruptcy for its “share of response costs” did not preclude it from later bringing a CERCLA contribution claim....more
Decision finds operator of a lead and zinc smelter not liable as an “arranger” under CERCLA for aerial deposition of heavy metals.
On July 27, a panel of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit unanimously held...more
8/1/2016
/ Air Pollution ,
Appeals ,
Arranger Liability ,
CERCLA ,
Contaminated Properties ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Mineral Extraction ,
RCRA ,
Soil ,
Tribal Lands ,
Water Pollution
Final rule seeks to reduce exposure to formaldehyde vapors by establishing emission standards and labeling requirements for certain wood products.
Six years after the passage of the Formaldehyde Emission Standards for...more
Decision allows landowners to challenge in court a US Army Corps of Engineers’ determination that a property is subject to regulation under the Clean Water Act....more
6/3/2016
/ Administrative Appeals ,
Administrative Procedure Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Final Judgment ,
Hawkes Co v United States Army Corps of Engineers ,
Judicial Review ,
Jurisdictional Determination (JD) ,
Land Developers ,
Permits ,
Property Owners ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 404 ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
Governor Brown and Legislature give the state’s Department of Toxic Substances Control more power to regulate hazardous substances.
On Friday, October 2, 2015, California Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. signed into law a...more
10/12/2015
/ Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Cost Recovery ,
DTSC ,
Environmental Remediation Costs ,
Financial Statements ,
Governor Brown ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Interest Rates ,
New Legislation ,
Permits ,
Potentially Responsible Party (PRP) ,
Public Health ,
Statute of Limitations
The final rule, touted by EPA as eliminating environmental impacts and cancer risks, substantively changes longstanding regulations regarding steam electric power plants.
On September 30, the US Environmental Protection...more
A Wisconsin district court has ruled that NCR Corporation’s liability for contamination in the Fox River is limited to NCR’s share of contamination contributed to the river....more
Interim regulations will phase out injection into high-quality aquifers pending development of permanent regulations....more
The decision sets a high bar for proving intent to dispose of hazardous substances and may make it easier for a party alleged to be liable as an arranger under CERCLA to secure summary judgment. ...more
4/3/2015