Your Guide to Emerging Issues in Environmental Regulation and Litigation.
After a COVID-related dip, ethylene oxide (EtO) cannot seem to stay out of the news these days. Every week there is some EtO-related legal or technological development in the United States. And now the public is being encouraged to shape the oversight of EtO use and manufacture. Following a long pause in years-long and intense … Continued
In 1990, Congress passed the Oil Pollution Act, also known as the OPA. The act was in response to the Exxon Valdez oil spill in 1989, and it amended the Clean Water Act of 1972. Its purpose was to avoid oil spills from vessels and facilities, and it works by enforcing removal of spilled oil and … Continued
In 2007, Massachusetts sued the United States Environmental Protection Agency because the state’s government, joining a collection of private organizations, did not think EPA was doing enough under the Clean Air Act (CAA) to regulate emissions of greenhouse gasses. The EPA rejected the petition, claiming in substance that the CAA’s ambit of “air pollution agents” … Continued
In a proposed rule published on May 3, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommended a ban on most uses of methylene chloride (also called dichloromethane), a common solvent and processing aid. It is used in a variety of consumer and commercial applications including adhesives and sealants, automotive products, and paint and coating removers. The chemical was manufactured … Continued
On the eve of Earth Day, the Biden Administration announced a new “White House Interagency Policy Committee (“IPC”) on Plastic Pollution and a Circular Economy.” The IPC is tasked with coordinating federal efforts on plastic pollution, prioritizing public health, economic development, environmental justice, and equity to ensure that the benefits of acting on plastic pollution … Continued
After years of delays – largely due to the COVID-19 pandemic – on April 11, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency finally issued two proposals that would reduce ethylene oxide (EtO) emissions affecting fence-line communities neighboring EtO sterilization facilities and establish direct protections for facility employees likely to be regularly exposed to this sterilizing chemical. … Continued
The Environmental Protection Agency announced on March 29, 2023 new proposed wastewater discharge standards to reduce discharges of toxic metals and other pollutants from coal-fired power plants. Steam electric power plants use heat to create steam that produces electricity. These plants use large amounts of water – approximately 133 billion gallons a day. This water … Continued
Just two days after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued its Notice of Proposed Rulemaking to establish legally enforceable drinking-water levels for six per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), reported by ELM here, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation released final ambient water quality guidance values for PFOA, PFOS, and 1,4-Dioxane in New York … Continued
Earlier this week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking titled, PFAS National Primary Drinking Water Regulation Rulemaking. In keeping to its commitments in the PFAS Strategic Roadmap, the EPA took a significant step by proposing to establish legally enforceable drinking-water levels for six per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) known to … Continued
In 2021, an unidentified person hacked the computer controlling the water system in Oldsmar, Fla., and increased the concentration of sodium hydroxide 100 times the normal amount, in an attempt to poison people. That same year, an unidentified hacker used a stolen password to delete certain programs from a water treatment program in the San … Continued