Welcome to the last of our three posts with our look ahead to 2026—the environmental edition. If you follow this blog, you have probably sensed a trend: environmental regulation rarely moves in a straight line. This coming year will be no different. Below is a more detailed look at three areas we will be watching
CERCLA
Administrators May Change, But PFAS Is Forever: EPA Announces PFAS Plan
This post was co-authored by Environmental, Energy + Telecommunications group partners Jonathan Schaefer and Emilee Mooney Scott and is being shared on our Environmental Law + blog. If you’re interested in getting updates on developments affecting environmental regulation, we invite you to subscribe to the blog.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), under Administrator Lee…
EPA Proposes to Designate PFOS and PFOA as CERCLA Hazardous Substances
Thank you to Emilee Mooney Scott for this post. Emilee is a member of Robinson+Cole’s Environment, Energy + Telecommunications practice group. She focuses her practice on environmental compliance, transactional and remediation matters, including matters related to emerging contaminants like PFAS.
Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released a pre-publication version of a Proposed…
EPA Lists First Sites to NPL for Vapor Intrusion
Last week, EPA added two sites to the National Priorities List (NPL), a list of sites of national priority for known or threatened releases of hazardous substances, solely for the risks posed by vapor intrusion. Vapor intrusion, a topic previously covered on our blog, is the migration of volatile chemicals from soil or groundwater into…
2018 Environmental, Health, and Safety Outlook for Manufacturers
I want to begin by celebrating the fifth anniversary of our Manufacturing Law Blog. We are passionate about providing you with legal updates that are relevant to your manufacturing business and are honored that you are here. With over 20,000 visits over the course of our blog’s relatively short life, we are proud of the…
Superfund Reform May Be a Slow Go
As we previously reported, the current administration set out to make Superfund reform a priority. Shortly after taking over as EPA Administrator, Scott Pruitt convened a task force to provide recommendations for restructuring and streamlining the Superfund cleanup process. Over the summer, Administrator Pruitt endorsed 42 recommendations from the task force. The recommendations included,…
Superfund Changes Afoot
Since taking over as EPA Administrator, Scott Pruitt has made it clear that he intends to focus on—and overhaul—the Superfund program. Calling the program “at the center of the Agency’s core mission”, Pruitt has put in place a couple of initiatives in an effort to streamline and improve the Superfund process and cleanups. In addition,…
Aerial Emissions Are Not “Disposal” Under CERCLA
Last year, we told you about a district court case in which air emissions from a lead smelter that ultimately settled on the land and in a water body gave rise to liability under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, 42 U.S.C. § 9601 et seq. (“CERCLA”). Last week, the Ninth Circuit…
Environmental, Health & Safety – What to Watch in 2016
To round out our series on industry and legal outlooks for 2016, I have compiled some of the many things for manufacturers to be aware of in the Environmental Health & Safety world for 2016.
1. Expansion of CERCLA Liability
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (“CERCLA”) is always a concern for manufacturers…
CERCLA Update: Court Reverses Divisibility Ruling
Earlier this year, we reported on a case that seemed to breathe new life into the divisibility defense under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). Under CERCLA, a party that causes or contributes to contamination, or even just owns contaminated property, can be held liable for the entire cleanup. In May 2015,…