As reported in the New York Times, Senator Murkowski announced that the Senate will vote June 10th on her resolution to block EPA from implementing climate change regulation under the Clean Air Act. The proposal was announced this past December and the vote follows finalization of EPA regulations that will initiate regulation of
Phasing in Greenhouse Gas Permitting- EPA’s “Tailoring Rule”
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Greenhouse Gas Regulation Commences January 2, 2011 without Legislation
On May 13, 2010, EPA finalized its regulatory approach for control greenhouse gases (GHGs) from large stationary sources. As discussed in prior posts, the statutory thresholds for triggering EPA’s New Source Review program (NSR) are 100/250 tons per year of a regulated Clean Air Act pollutant.
As
Two Roads for Addressing Climate Change
Last week, two distinct paths clearly emerged for addressing climate change. The first, legislation that would put in place a market mechanism to reduce emission over time- the Kerry-Lieberman Bill. The second, EPA’s use of its existing regulatory authority under the Clean Air Act to reduce greenhouse (GHGs) emissions (EPA Tailoring Rule)
EPA
Addressing the State Liability Gap in the Federal “Innocent Landowner Defense”
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Liability for pre-existing contamination acts as a strong deterrent to re-use of brownfield properties. Prospective purchasers simply do not want to expose themselves to potential liability especially when they had nothing to do with the contamination.
At the federal level, there has been an attempt to address liability exposure in order to provide prospective purchasers some level
EPA Ends “Opt-Out” in Lead Abatement Rule
On April 23, 2010 EPA is finalized revisions to the Lead Renovation, Repair, and Painting Program (RRP) that went final on April 22, 2008.
Under the revisions EPA eliminates the “opt-out” provision that currently exempts a renovation firm from the training and work practice
requirements if the firm obtains certification from the owner that no child under age
Expansive Pre-emption in Climate Bill is Right Focus
Last week, Senator Voinovich drew attention and criticism for proposing a significant expansion of the preemption language in the forthcoming bi-partisan climate bill to be introduced by Senators Kerry, Lieberman and Graham. Failure to carefully consider the preemption language and possible additional limits on other regulatory authority would be short-sighted.
One of the main reasons for Congress
Changes to Clean Ohio Policies Impact Brownfield Projects
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The administration of the Clean Ohio program is largely governed by the policies developed by the Clean Ohio Council. Separate policies have been generated for the Clean Ohio Assistance Fund (COAF) and the Clean Ohio Revitalization Fund (CORF).
Over the life of the Clean Ohio program, the Clean Ohio Council has routinely updated the program
Another New Source Review Decision Highlights Inconsistencies
On March 31st, a Federal District Court in Tennessee (6th Circuit) issued the latest decision in relation to litigation stemming from New Source Review (NSR) enforcement actions against electric coal fired utilities. The TVA Bull Run decision is another example of the inconsistent application of the test for determining when projects trigger NSR.
The NSR regulatory program continues to
Five Tips to Help Reduce the Risk of EPA Enforcement Actions
I have been on all sides of the fence relative to environmental enforcement actions. I have represented the State, managed Ohio EPA enforcement program and now I represent companies who find themselves the subject of enforcement. These experiences have given me valuable insight into what things to do and not to do when dealing with compliance oversight.
When speaking
EPA to Expand Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule
On October 30, 2009 U.S. EPA finalized the first mandatory rule related to climate change- Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Mandatory Reporting Rule. Beginning this year 31 industries must track and report their emissions. Overall, the original GHG mandatory reporting rule required reporting for an estimated 85 percent of the total GHG emissions in the U.S.
Only a