On August 9th, the State of Ohio announced Round 4 of its Ohio Brownfield Remediation Program awards. The State awarded $106.9 million in brownfield grant funding to assist with redevelopment of 61 brownfield sites in 22 counties. On the map copied above from the State’s announcement, the counties in brown received cleanup grants and the
In July 2023, the Ohio Legislature injected an additional $350 million into the Ohio Brownfield Remediation Program (OBRP) due to the success of the program in the prior two years. Funding was split into $175 million in FY 24 and a second $175 million available in FY 25. The Legislature also reserved $1 million in
Back on August 29, 2023, U.S. EPA issued the rule to conform its regulations to the ruling of the U.S. Supreme Court in Sackett v. EPA which significantly reduced the number of wetlands that are federally protected under the Clean Water Act (CWA). (See, prior post discussing Sackett) The Court limited federal jurisdiction to only
On February 8, 2024, U.S. EPA proposed two new significant regulations that would expand its authority to require cleanup of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The scope of the proposed regulations and the potential facilities affected are discussed below.
Background on RCRA Program
To understand the potential
On February 16th, Ohio launched the All Ohio Future Fund which provides $750 million in funding to assist communities with infrastructure costs in order to create project-ready economic development sites. The purpose of the funding is to attract new businesses or grow existing Ohio businesses. It is not meant to be a job retention program.
While U.S. EPA is poised to issue a series of federal regulations related to PFAS and impacts to the environment, it is the states that are taking the lead on regulating the presence of Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in consumer products. Such regulations are forcing manufacturers to reach back into their supply chains to
In July 2023, the Ohio Legislature injected an additional $350 million into the Ohio Brownfield Remediation Program (OBRP) due to the success of the program in the prior two years. At the end of the first cycle of funding, the Program was significantly oversubscribed. Therefore, it was anticipated there would be more projects in the
There is general awareness of the need to perform environmental due diligence on virtually any transaction that involves commercial/industrial property. However, even with such general awareness missteps or lack of attention to detail during the process can risk exposing a purchaser or new tenant to significant liability. Having been involved in counseling on environmental due
In July, the Ohio General Assembly passed the Fiscal Year 2024-2025 Main Operating Budget which included another round of $350 million in funding for the Brownfield Remediation Fund. This second round of funding builds up on the very successful launch of the program in the prior State budget.
While the structure of the program largely
On August 29, 2023, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) issued a direct final rule without public comment amending the definition of the “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) which governs the scope of federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act (CWA). U.S. EPA issued the