Author: Goldberg Segalla

General
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Navigating Landowners through the Brownfields

The EPA recently updated its vintage standard guidance on CERCLA’s landowner defenses. This was the first update since 2003. The update was explained as an effort to provide clarity.

Historically, under CERCLA, the owner or operator of a contaminated property could be held strictly, jointly, severally and even retroactively liable for releases of hazardous substances. The three statutory liability defenses available under the 2002 Brownfields Amendments to CERCLA provide important liability limitations for landowners who qualify as:

1. Bona fide prospective purchasers (BFPPs)

2. Contiguous …

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Florida / General / Litigation
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Florida Appellate Court Finds That State Laws Preempt City-Enacted Anti-Styrofoam Ban

Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal recently struck down a 2016 Coral Gables’ law that prohibited the sale and use of food-related polystyrene containers (i.e., Styrofoam) by food service providers and stores. This decision reverses a trial court decision granting a motion for summary judgment in favor of the city and finding that the three state laws in question were unconstitutional.

In its decision, written by Judge Norma S. Lindsey, the Florida Third District Court of Appeal held that the ordinance was preempted by …

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Groundwater Monitoring / New York / Water Contamination
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New York Continues to Lead Nation in Regulation and Removal of 1,4-Dioxane

New York continues to strengthen its regulatory approach to 1,4-dioxane. Last month, the state Department of Health adopted the nation’s first maximum contaminant level (MCL) for 1,4-dioxane in drinking water, The regulation is working its way toward implementation and is now in the public comment period. Following assessment of public comments, the proposed regulation will either be revised or submitted for adoption by the Public Health and Health Planning Council. The regulation will then go into effect upon publication of a Notice of Adoption in the New …

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Clean Water Act / EPA
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Lead Alert: Unapproved Water Additive Leads to Lead Contamination in Chicago Suburb

Illinois has filed suit against a company that provides water to a Chicago suburb after it made changes to the chemical additives in the water supply without permission from state regulators. The suit goes on to allege that the change caused lead to contaminate the village’s drinking water.

The problems started in 2017 when Aqua Illinois switched the source of the village’s water from groundwater wells to the Kankakee River. The suit alleges a chemical added to the water system to address resident’s complaints about …

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Pennsylvania / Regulations
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Pennsylvania Appellate Court Splits the Difference on Oil & Gas Regulations

As hydraulic fracturing continues to be a hot topic among Pennsylvania’s Appellate Courts, the Commonwealth Court (PA’s intermediary appellate division), recently released an opinion addressing a multitude of state-level regulations concerning oil and gas operations, helping to define the rules by which drillers must abide within the state.

At issue in Marcellus Shale Coalition v. Department of Environmental Protection of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, were several provisions within Chapter 78(a) of the Pennsylvania Code, which governs unconventional oil and gas well operations. Roughly three years …

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Michigan
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Employing New Technology to Clean Up an Old Site

Cleanup work has resumed at a former chemical plant in central Michigan that’s become one of the country’s costliest Superfund sites. However, these efforts come with a new twist. The EPA plans to test a new method to remove soil contaminants in floodplains downstream from a former chemical plant in central Michigan with hopes that it could save millions of dollars on the costs of this ongoing cleanup.

Velsicol Chemical Corp. (formerly Michigan Chemical Corp.) produced various chemical compounds and products at the subject site …

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Michigan
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Wolverine State Moves Toward Regulation of GenX

Michigan could be the first state in the nation to establish maximum contaminant levels for the chemical, GenX. This comes after a Science Advisory Workgroup, made up of three environmental and health experts, listed GenX among seven chemicals deserving of regulation in the state’s drinking water in late June. Although it gained notoriety for contaminating the Cape Fear River in North Carolina, GenX is not among chemicals currently regulated by the EPA, leaving beleaguered states to step up and set guidelines where needed. Michigan’s proposed …

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California
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$2 Billion Glyphosate Verdict Weed Whacked To $86.7 Million

On July 25, 2019, Judge Winifred Smith of the Alameda County, California Superior Court reduced a $2 billion judgment entered by a jury against Monsanto Company, holding that the damages award was unconstitutionally high. The damages award was the third against the Bayer AG subsidiary in cases regarding whether popular herbicide Roundup causes Non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The court reduced the judgment to $86.7 million.

The court held that there was clear and convincing evidence that Monsanto committed malice, oppression, or fraud. Specifically, the evidence showed that …

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California / Legislation
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Three Steps Forward, Three Steps Back- California Moves Forward With Legislation to Adopt Overturned Federal Regulations

In a move that seems tailor-made to create additional litigation, California legislators are considering legislation that would automatically adopt any federal environmental regulations that are weakened or eliminated by the federal government.

“SB 1 ensures clean air, clean water, endangered species, and worker safety standards that have been in place for as long as 50 years are not rolled back as a result of the anti-environment actions of the president and Congress,” Toni Atkins, Senate president pro tem, said in a statement accompanying the legislation.…

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California / CERCLA / EPA
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Tug-of-War: EPA and States Take Opposing Action on 1,4-Dioxane

On June 28, 2019, the EPA released its draft risk evaluation for 1,4-Dioxane. The EPA’s initial determination was that 1,4-Dioxane poses no unreasonable risks to the environment and no unreasonable risks to occupational non-users. However, the EPA also concluded that the chemical presents unreasonable risks to workers in certain circumstances. The same day, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control held a public workshop on 1,4-Dioxane risks, and the department is actively considering further regulation. Just two days earlier, the New York legislature approved a …

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