Recent Articles

US EPA Reissues and Replaces 2008 Stormwater Construction General Permit For Five Year Term

Kim Burke
March 15, 2012 14:36

On February 16, 2012, US EPA reissued and renewed the expiring 2008 Stormwater Construction General Permit (CGP) for a five-year term.  The new permit covers stormwater discharges from disturbances of one or more acres of land.  EPA states that the CGP is issued to “improve its ...

Using Insurance to Pay for Environmental Response Costs, Including a Remedial Investigation

Bill Wagner
March 08, 2012 14:00

Businesses and property owners can often have their own insurance companies pay for the costs to investigate and clean up environmental contamination on their own property under old liability insurance policies, such as commercial general liability (or CGL) policies.  Many older policies...

US EPA Announces New Plan For Identifying Existing Chemicals For Risk Assessment

Robert Bilott
March 05, 2012 15:30

On March 1, 2012, US EPA announced that it has finalized a new plan for identifying which existing chemicals should undergo comprehensive risk assessment under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).  US EPA also announced that, using this new plan, it has identified  83 existing...

Who Reviews Your Phase I's for Quality Control?

Bill Wagner
March 02, 2012 18:45

Environmental consultants need standard operating procedures in order to manage and control the risks of being sued and paying substantial defense costs and claims.  This is especially true for consultants performing Phase I Environmental Site Assessments, who have the difficult task of...

OSHA PELs, NIOSH RELs, or USEPA IIASLs: Which Are Relevant To A Vapor Intrusion Lawsuit Under RCRA?

Bill Wagner
February 13, 2012 14:00

A federal district court was recently presented several government standards to use in determining whether indoor air contamination from vapor intrusion created an imminent and substantial endangerment to human health or the environment to support a citizen suit claim asserted under the Resource...

Portland Cement Facilities Challenge New EPA Rules

Frank Deveau
February 08, 2012 14:34

On December 9, 2011, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia invalidated and delayed the implementation of certain provisions in the United States Environmental Protection Agency’s (“EPA”) new rules governing hazardous pollutants emitted from cement kilns....

Court Rules Employer Not Liable Under CERCLA For Employee's Actions

Frank Deveau
February 02, 2012 14:30

On November 9, 2011, the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota (No. 0:11-cv-00619-DWF-FLN), ruled that Northern States Power Company, through its wholly owned subsidiary Xcel Energy, (“Xcel”) was not liable for the unauthorized actions of its former employee that...

EPA Prevented From Delaying Rules For Boilers and Incinerators

Bob Clark
January 30, 2012 15:10

On January 9, 2012, the District Court for the District of Columbia vacated the EPA’s May 18, 2011 “Delay Notice” that stayed effectiveness of a rule limiting emissions from industrial, commercial, and institutional boilers and another rule limiting emissions from commercial and...

Supremes Slam U.S. EPA's Wetlands Heavy-Handedness During Oral Argument

Bill Wagner
January 24, 2012 13:37

Justice Alito called EPA’s position “outrageous.”  This was one of the many barbs aimed at EPA during oral argument in Sackett v. EPA, a case where property owners seek pre-enforcement judicial review of an EPA administrative order.  The Sacketts wanted to build a...

D.C. Circuit Stays EPA's Cross-State Air Pollution Rule

January 16, 2012 14:32

On December 30, 2011, the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit stayed the EPA’s Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (“CSPAR”) pending resolution of a challenge to the rule.  EME Homer City Generation, L.P., v. EPA, No. 11-1302 (D.C. Cir. Dec. 30, 2011) (per...