Author: Goldberg Segalla

Emissions / New York
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Nuclear NY: “ZEC” Subsidies Permitted by Second Circuit

On September 27, 2018, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the District Court’s ruling in Coalition for Competitive Elec., et al. v. Zibelman, et al., and determined that New York State’s ZEC program is neither field nor conflict preempted. No. 17-2654, 2018 WL 4622696 (2nd Cir. Sept. 27, 2018). Moreover, the court found that the plaintiffs lacked Article III standing to raise a dormant Commerce Clause claim.

In August 2016, the New York Public Service Commission (PSC) adopted the Zero Emissions Credit (ZEC) …

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EPA / Missouri
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The Art of the Deal? New EPA Administrator shaves $30 million from clean-up costs for nuclear waste near underground landfill fire in suburban St. Louis.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has announced its final plan for the West Lake Landfill in suburban St. Louis. As we’ve previously reported, West Lake Landfill is the site of illegally dumped nuclear waste that is buried near a long-smoldering underground fire.

Approximately a decade ago, the EPA announced a cap-and-monitor proposal for the site. However, that plan was met with such resistance that it was withdrawn and a new proposal was announced earlier this year. That plan, with an estimated cost of $236 million, …

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General
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WEBINAR: Unregulated (Mostly), Uncertain, and Ubiquitous-PFAS and the Highly Anticipated ATSDR Report

Join Goldberg Segalla’s George H. Buermann and Oliver E. Twaddell​ for a complimentary, live, and  interactive webinar on PFAS substances and how companies, insurers, and counsel should prepare themselves for what might be the next mass tort. George and Oliver will present on the most recent — and perhaps most significant — indicator of these developments, a report from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), which includes a toxicological profile of PFAS and a comprehensive analysis of the current state of these …

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Clean Air Act
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Splitting from Other Circuits, Sixth Circuit Limits the Scope of the Clean Water Act

This week, the Sixth Circuit diverged from the Fourth and Ninth Circuits by limiting the scope of the Clean Water Act (CWA) as it relates to groundwater. The court held that the CWA cannot regulate pollutants from point sources if they reach navigable waters through groundwater. This decision is a clear split from the Fourth and Ninth Circuits, who have both held this year that groundwater can be regulated under the CWA if it serves as a conduit for pollution that eventually reaches navigable waters, …

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Clean Power Plan / Emissions / Legislation
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Sub-National Efforts to Tackle Greenhouse Gas Emissions Take up the Slack

Given the Trump Administration’s position on climate change, one could easily become discouraged that any meaningful progress can be made in reaching the Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) set for the United States under the 2015 Paris Agreement to stabilize greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and to keep anthropogenic warming to below 2°C.

Under the Paris Agreement, the United States is tasked with reducing its GHG emissions by 26-28 percent below its 2005 emissions by 2025. Such pessimism might not be completely warranted, however, despite the Trump …

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Clean Water Act / EPA
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Battles Over Suspension of the Clean Water Rule Leave 23 States Under its Guidance

In the last year, we’ve reported several times on the implementation and interpretation of the Clean Water Rule. The 2015 Clean Water Rule, or Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule, attempted to more clearly define which bodies of water fall under United States federal jurisdiction and are covered under the 1972 Clean Water Act (CWA). It expanded protection to some tributaries, streams, and wetlands that lead to the “navigable waters” traditionally protected under the CWA. Critics argue that in effect, the WOTUS rule greatly …

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Agriculture / Clean Air Act / Climate Change / EPA
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The Costs of Doing Business: 9th Circuit Upholds Oregon Clean Fuels Program

In 2007, the Oregon legislature instituted a program designed to reduce the state’s greenhouse emissions to at least 10 percent lower than 2010 levels by 2025. The Oregon Clean Fuels Program uses a cap-and-trade scheme that attributes a carbon intensity value to transportation fuels produced or imported into Oregon. Regulated parties must keep the average carbon intensity of all transportation fuels used in Oregon below an annual limit. A fuel with a carbon intensity below the limit generates a credit, and one with a carbon …

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Emerging Issues
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PFAS Update: Unregulated (Mostly), Uncertain, and Ubiquitous

Partner George Buermann and associate Oliver Twaddell of the firm’s Environmental Practice Group recently published a short article, “PFAS Update: Unregulated (Mostly), Uncertain, and Ubiquitous,” in DRI’s Toxic Torts and Environmental Law Committee newsletter.  This update offers a quick read on key developments related to PFAS — chemicals that have become a major focus of both the plaintiffs’ bar as well as regulators relative to environmental, product liability, and toxic tort issues.

Read the full article here. …

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California / Climate Change / Emerging Issues
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California Leading the Charge In Renewable Energy

Recently, the Assembly of the State of California approved the 100 Percent Clean Energy Act of 2018 or “SB100” which will require all energy used in the state to come from renewable sources by December 31, 2045. The bill, authored by State Senator Kevin de León, passed the California Senate last year, the Assembly on August 28, 2018, and was reconciled by the Senate on August 29, 2018. All that remains before the bill becomes law, is Governor Jerry Brown’s signature. According to the bill’s …

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Emerging Issues / EPA / Illinois
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EPA Releases Report Linking Sterilizing Chemical to Increased Risk of Cancer

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has determined that a suburban area in Willowbrook, Illinois is facing a risk of cancer over nine times the national average due to contamination by ethylene oxide. Ethylene oxide has been used for decades as fumigant to sterilize heat-sensitive medical equipment and other goods. The volatile, easily absorbed chemical has been recognized as a carcinogen since 1985. In December 2016, the EPA released a re-assessment linking it more conclusively to breast and blood cancer.

Sterigenics International, a company that’s …

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