Author: Larry D. Mason

Chemical hazard pictograms Toxic focus
EPA
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EPA Increases Pressure on Manufacturers (and Importers) of TSCA High-Priority Substances

On June 29, 2021, the U.S. EPA published a final rule requiring manufacturers (including importers) of 50 specified chemical substances to report certain lists and copies of unpublished health and safety studies to EPA. 86 Fed. Reg. 34147. The EPA’s final rule was issued pursuant to Section 8(d) of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) and the TSCA Health and Safety Data Reporting rule codified at 40 C.F.R. Part 716. The EPA established detailed reporting requirements for chemical substances added by the final rule to …

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EPA
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EPA Releases Historic Climate Change Indicators Report

After a four-year gap, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) resumed its issuance of climate change indicators reporting on Wednesday May 12, 2021. The newly released data, which used 54 separate indicators, provides the federal government’s most comprehensive and up-to-date public release of information to date and demonstrates that an ever-increasing warming trend world is making life more difficult in the United States. The report’s issuance is conveniently timed as the Biden administration is taking aggressive action to address the pollution challenges that contribute to global …

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water coming out of a pipe
Illinois / PFAS
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Illinois EPA Joins Growing List of States Issuing PFAS Health Advisories

Illinois has joined a growing list of states seeking to regulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and compounds. On January 28, 2021, the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency announced four “health advisories” in accordance with the Illinois Part 620 groundwater regulations (35 Ill. Adm. Code Part 620). Specifically, the four PFAS compounds Illinois issued health advisories on are PFBS, PFHxS, PFHxA, and PFOA.

Pursuant to the Illinois Administrative Code, 35 Ill. Adm. Code 620.605, health advisories are issued when a chemical substance that is harmful to …

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greenhouse-gas-emissions
EPA
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EPA’s Affordable Clean Energy Rule Rejected

On the last full day of the Trump presidency, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia issued a strong rebuke of the Trump administration’s deregulatory agenda in its January 19, 2021 American Lung Assoc. v. EPA decision rejecting the EPA’s industry-friendly climate rule for power plants.

In rejecting the Affordable Clean Energy rule and remanding it back to the EPA, the Biden administration now has a clear opportunity for regulating greenhouse gas emissions from the power industry. The district court called the …

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General
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Annual Judicial Hellholes Report Demonstrates Continuing Impact on Environmental and Toxic Tort Litigation

The recently released American Tort Reform Foundation 2020-21 Judicial Hellholes Report highlights nine U.S. jurisdictions where expansive civil litigation continued notwithstanding the COVID-19 pandemic and is expected to flourish. In most of these jurisdictions, mass toxic tort and environmental litigation has been prevalent.

Topping this year’s list is the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas and the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, followed by New York City and California. South Carolina, Louisiana, and Georgia round out the fourth, fifth, and sixth positions. St. Louis, Missouri, perennial problem …

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Illinois / Litigation / Water Contamination
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Illinois Supreme Court Rejects Class Action Against Chicago Over “Increased Danger” from Lead Water Lines

Illinois’ highest state court in Gordon Berry, et al, v. The City of Chicago has rejected a proposed class action that threatened to overwhelm Chicago with claims over elevated lead contamination risk from its old lead water lines. On September 24, 2020, the Illinois Supreme Court overturned the ruling of a state appeals court, ruling a Circuit Court of Cook County judge was correct in finding Chicago homeowners needed to do more than simply claim the lead in their water was dangerous in order to …

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PFAS
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Limited PFAS Regulations Included in Recent Law Creating Military’s Space Force

When the National Defense Authorization Act for 2020 (NDAA) was signed into law on Dec. 20, 2019, it is not surprising that the creation of the Military’s Space Force garnered the most attention. However, for environmental regulatory observers, the new law surprisingly included several environmental regulations meant to address per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), including PFOA and PFOS. More specifically, the NDAA prohibits the use of firefighting foam containing PFAS after Oct. 1, 2024 at military installations and immediately prohibits use of PFAS-containing firefighting foam …

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New York
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New York Bans Products Containing 1,4-Dioxane Effective January 1, 2022

On December 9, 2019, New York Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo approved legislation that will eliminate the sale of products containing the chemical 1,4-dioxane in New York state. The ban, which is scheduled to take effect on January 1, 2022, has a broad reach and includes many household cleaning products, some cosmetics, and personal care products containing the soon to be banned chemical.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has classified 1,4-dioxane as a likely carcinogen. It is a man-made chemical that is commonly found in shampoos, …

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Emerging Issues / Illinois
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Illinois Legislature Advance Ethylene Oxide Ban

On October 30, 2019, the Illinois House of Representatives voted to approve legislation that would effectively ban the use of ethylene oxide, which is a chemical used for sterilizing the majority of medical devices found in hospital operating rooms and other health care settings. In moving forward with the legislation, Illinois lawmakers rejected warnings from federal health care regulators and medical device and surgical tool manufacturers that the measure would lead to shortages of properly sterilized health care tools. To lawmakers, however, the legislation is …

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