Megan Baroni

Megan Baroni

I am an environmental attorney in Robinson+Cole’s Environmental and Utilities Group. I have worked with manufacturers, both big and small, on environmental compliance, risk management, and litigation matters for my entire career. My full firm bio can be accessed here.

As an environmental lawyer, I never want to be a roadblock to our client’s goals. I strive to understand the business of our manufacturing clients – what do you make and how do you make it? I want to know your objective, and I want to help you get there. Regulatory requirements and potential legal liabilities can sometimes seem daunting, but I help our clients develop an understanding of the requirements and all of the potential options so that we can create practical and cost-effective solutions to accomplish the objective. I work with management as well as the people who make our clients’ products every day, and I enjoy every part of it. It’s a good day for me when I can put on my hard hat and walk the factory floor.

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OSHA Issues COVID-19 Guidance for Workplaces

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Coronavirus, OSHA Compliance
Last week, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued guidance on preparing workplaces for COVID-19. The guidance provides recommendations to help employers plan for the impact of COVID-19 on their businesses, workers, customers, and the public. While a number of states have implemented orders affecting certain workplaces, this guidance remains important for all employers to … Continue Reading

PFAS Update: EPA Progress Under PFAS Action Plan

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Environment
Earlier this year, we wrote about EPA’s PFAS Action Plan, the agency’s blueprint for addressing contamination and protecting public health from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The PFAS Action Plan, released in February 2019, details a number of actions EPA plans to take with regard to PFAS, including time frames for implementation. EPA has been … Continue Reading

PFAS Update: EPA Progress Under PFAS Action Plan

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Environment
Earlier this year, we wrote about EPA’s PFAS Action Plan, the agency’s blueprint for addressing contamination and protecting public health from per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The PFAS Action Plan, released in February 2019, details a number of actions EPA plans to take with regard to PFAS, including time frames for implementation. EPA has been … Continue Reading

OSHA Approves New Respiratory Fit Testing Protocols

By Megan Baroni on Posted in OSHA Compliance
Thank you to my colleague, Jonathan Schaefer, for this post. Jon focuses his practice on environmental compliance counseling, occupational health and safety, permitting, site remediation, and litigation related to federal and state regulatory programs. Today OSHA issued a final rule approving two additional quantitative fit testing protocols for inclusion in appendix A of the Respiratory Protection Standard. … Continue Reading

EPA Formalizes Policy to Partner with States on Environmental Compliance and Enforcement

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Environment
Over the summer, EPA published a policy document to enhance cooperation between it and the many state agencies that enforce federal environmental programs. The document formalizes a long-standing priority of this administration to, as we previously reported, “rebalance the power between Washington and the states to create tangible environmental results for the American people.” The … Continue Reading

Environmental Considerations in Corporate Transactions

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Environment
My partner Bob Melvin and I recently gave a presentation on environmental, health, and safety considerations in mergers and acquisitions. While it would be impossible to cover our entire presentation in a blog post, I thought it would be good to highlight a few important environmental considerations in developing, negotiating, and finalizing corporate deals. Consider … Continue Reading

OSHA Seeking Public Comments on Lockout/Tagout Standards

By Megan Baroni on Posted in OSHA Compliance
Thank you to my colleague, Jonathan Schaefer, for this post. Jon focuses his practice on environmental compliance counseling, occupational health and safety, permitting, site remediation, and litigation related to federal and state regulatory programs. OSHA recently announced that it is considering whether it should revise the Control of Hazardous Energy (Lockout/Tagout (LOTO)) standard to accommodate recent technological advances … Continue Reading

OSHA Requesting Public Comment on Powered Industrial Truck Standards

By Megan Baroni on Posted in OSHA Compliance
OSHA recently announced that it is considering whether it should revise the powered industrial trucks standards for general, construction, and maritime industries. Powered industrial trucks include forklifts, fork trucks, motorized hand trucks, platform lift trucks, tractors, and other industrial trucks powered by an electric motor or internal combustion engine. The powered industrial trucks standards have … Continue Reading

TSCA Implementation Update: EPA Releases Updated Inventory and Delays Risk Evaluations

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Chemical Regulation
Thank you to my colleague, Emilee Mooney Scott, for this post. Emilee focuses her practice on chemicals and hazardous materials regulation and is counsel in our Environmental & Utilities Practice Group. As we previously outlined, the Toxic Substances Control Act (“TSCA”) was amended in 2016 to provide EPA with much broader authority to regulate “existing” chemical … Continue Reading

EPA Unveils PFAS Action Plan

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Environment, Environmental Compliance & Permitting, Environmental Enforcement, Environmental Rulemaking
On Valentine’s Day, EPA showed a little love for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), announcing a sweeping plan to address PFAS contamination and protect public health. PFAS are a group of man-made chemicals that have been gaining a lot of attention, as described in our 2019 outlook. EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler announced the PFAS … Continue Reading

2019 Environmental, Health, and Safety Outlook For Manufacturers

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Environment, Environmental Compliance & Permitting, Environmental Enforcement, Health & Safety, OSHA Compliance
This is the last of our three-part series of predictions for 2019. First Matt provided our thoughts and predictions in the labor/employment arena. Last week, Jeff gave our outlook for corporate compliance and litigation. Last but not least, this week I am providing our predictions for hot topics in environmental, health, and safety compliance, enforcement, and … Continue Reading

OSHA’s Use of Drones During Workplace Inspections

By Megan Baroni on Posted in OSHA Compliance
These days, it is not uncommon to see drones flying overhead. But employers beware…you might see one during your next workplace inspection. Earlier this year, OSHA issued a memo formalizing its use of drones for inspection activities, and, according to a recent report by Bloomberg Law, it used drones for 9 inspections this year. The … Continue Reading

OSHA Launches New Inspection Targeting Program

By Megan Baroni on Posted in OSHA Compliance
Thank you to Jonathan Schaefer for this post. Jon is an attorney in our Environmental, Energy & Telecommunications Practice Group and his practice focuses on environmental compliance counseling, occupational health and safety, permitting, site remediation, and litigation related to federal and state regulatory programs. On October 17, 2018, the Occupational Health & Safety Administration (OSHA) announced the … Continue Reading

OSHA Clarifies Position On Anti-Retaliation Rule

By Megan Baroni on Posted in OSHA Compliance
Thank you to Jonathan Schaefer for this post. Jon is an attorney in our Environmental, Energy & Telecommunications Practice Group and his practice focuses on environmental compliance counseling, occupational health and safety, permitting, site remediation, and litigation related to federal and state regulatory programs. On October 11, 2018, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) issued a … Continue Reading

Monsanto Verdict Forewarns of Claims for Failure to Warn

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Chemical Regulation, Environment, Litigation
By now, we have all heard about the $289 million verdict against Monsanto in the Roundup litigation. A California jury awarded the sum to Dewayne “Lee” Johnson, a school groundskeeper who claimed that exposure to Roundup contributed to his lymphoma. Johnson claimed that Monsanto’s product was defectively designed and that Monsanto failed to warn consumers … Continue Reading

Climate Change Nuisance Lawsuit Dismissed

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Environment, Litigation
This week, a California federal court dismissed a lawsuit brought by two cities against a number of large oil companies seeking to force the companies to fund the cities’ climate change adaptation efforts. The Court held that, while the science behind global warming is real, the problem must be solved by the legislative and executive … Continue Reading

EPA to Rethink Cost-Benefit Analyses During Rulemaking Process

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Environment, Environmental Rulemaking
This week, EPA announced that it is considering developing regulations to optimize the use of cost-benefit analyses when it is taking regulatory action. Many environmental statutes require the consideration of costs and benefits to evaluate the impacts of policy choices. EPA is seeking public comment on whether and how these analyses can be made more … Continue Reading

Failed to File An Electronic Injury Report? OSHA May Be Looking For You

By Megan Baroni on Posted in OSHA Compliance
Thank you to Jonathan Schaefer for this post. Jon is an attorney in our Environmental, Energy & Telecommunications Practice Group and his practice focuses on environmental compliance counseling, occupational health and safety, permitting, site remediation, and litigation related to federal and state regulatory programs. Under the 2016 Recording and Reporting Occupational Injuries and Illnesses rule … Continue Reading

EPA Considering Ban On The Use Of Private Scientific Data

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Environment, Environmental Compliance & Permitting
EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt is considering a plan to restrict the agency’s use of scientific data to only that data which is publicly available. The move would prevent EPA from using private studies, dubbed “secret science,” to justify actions such as passing new regulations. It is not yet clear whether Pruitt will attempt to use … Continue Reading

EPA to Defer to States on Enforcement

By Megan Baroni on Posted in Environmental Compliance & Permitting, Environmental Enforcement
In our 2018 outlook, we told you about the trend towards cooperative federalism—EPA’s plan to “rebalance the power between Washington and the states to create tangible environmental results for the American people.” Early in 2018, EPA has already taken steps towards putting cooperative federalism into practice. At the end of January, EPA Assistant Administrator for the … Continue Reading
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