Author: Daniel L. Klein

The last time the EPA tightened standards for truck emissions like this, the century was barely a year old and Bill Clinton was still President; in December of 2000 the EPA issued rules dramatically limiting particulate matter (PM) emissions and Nitric Oxide (NOx) on heavy duty trucks to go into effect for 2007-2010. PM has been shown to cause eye, nose, lung, and throat irritation, as well as exacerbating existing breathing problems. NOx, has similarly been linked to chronically-reduced lung function and increased risk of …

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is moving to include natural gas processing (NGP) facilities, also referred to as “natural gas liquid extraction facilities”, to the expanding list of industry groups obligated to report releases of specific chemicals pursuant to the reporting requirements of Section 313 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 (EPCRA), commonly known as the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI).

The TRI requires certain industrial entities that create, manufacture, or otherwise use certain identified chemicals including hexane, hydrogen sulfide, toluene, benzene, …

Methane, the powerful greenhouse gas responsible for a disproportionate percentage of man-made global warming, has for years been targeted with increasing oversight and regulation as a result of growing concerns about climate change. As a result, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), under the Biden administration, is seeking to expand its stance on the issue with sweeping new proposals.

The EPA put out new regulations on November 2, 2021, including a proposal that would reduce more than 40 million tons of methane from 2023 to 2035 …

Coming shortly after the September 23, 2021, enactment of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s rule calling for an 85% reduction in hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) over the next 15 years, the agency maintained its momentum on October 8, 2021, granting 10 petitions submitted under the American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act to further reduce HFCs.

The AIM Act, enacted in December 2020, specifically directs the EPA to address HFCs in three areas; phase down their production and consumption, manage the use of existing HFCs and alternative chemicals, …

Methylene chloride (MC) is used as a paint-stripping solvent, an aerosol propellant, in the manufacture of film, and as a solvent in drug manufacturing. In the research laboratory and in food production, it is commonly used for extractions. It has also been clinically demonstrated to cause liver and lung cancer in animals and may be a carcinogen to humans, causing severe irritation and burning to the skin and eyes with exposure above recommended levels.

Because of these risks and in response largely to public pressure, …