EPA
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U.S. EPA’s Addition of 1-BP to CERCLA Hazardous Substance List Likely Precursor to Similar Actions on PFAS
On April 8, 2022, U.S. EPA added the industrial solvent 1-bromopropane (1-BP) to its list of CERCLA hazardous substances; this listing was triggered by U.S. EPA’s decision to add 1-BP to the Clean Air Act’s list of hazardous air pollutants in January 2022. Continue reading
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U.S. EPA Releases “ECHO Notify” to Increase Public Awareness of Enforcement Related Information
On March 22, 2022, U.S. EPA released a new web tool designed to ensure that information regarding environmental violations and enforcement actions is more readily available to the public. The new tool, called ECHO Notify, allows users to sign up for weekly emails when new information is available with respect to violations of environmental statutes… Continue reading
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U.S. EPA Announces Plan to Tighten PFAS Reporting Requirements
In connection with the release of its 2020 Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) National Analysis which evidenced a 10% decline in environmental releases of TRI chemicals between 2019 and 2020, U.S. EPA also announced that it intends to initiate a rulemaking later in 2022 that will, among other things, remove the de minimis exemption for reporting… Continue reading
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Heightened Risk to the Regulated Community: U.S. EPA Overfiling
In what could portend significant risk to the regulated community, a recent “overfiling” by U.S. EPA in connection with a Clean Air Act (CAA) settlement between the Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) and a steel plant should at a minimum cause the regulated community to be cautious when entering into settlement agreements with state… Continue reading
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WOTUS to Get The SCOTUS Treatment, Again
On January 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear a case on the scope and authority of the Clean Water Act (“CWA”). The Court granted certiorari in the case of Sackett v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 19-35469, on appeal from the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. Continue reading
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PFOA and PFAS Take Another Step Towards Becoming Full-Fledged Members of the CERCLA Family of Hazardous Substances
On January 10, 2022, U.S. EPA forwarded a proposed rule that seeks to designate perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) as “hazardous substances” under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA). Although not unexpected since this was a key element of U.S. EPA’s PFAS Strategic Roadmap, U.S. EPA’s proposed rule is unique… Continue reading
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U.S. EPA Finalizes Fifth UCMR—PFAS Remain in the Regulatory Bullseye
On December 20, 2021, U.S. EPA finalized its Fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR) that will require public water systems (PWS) to collect monitoring data for 29 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and lithium in drinking water. Continue reading
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EPA Issues Stop Sale Order for COVID-19 Disinfectant
On July 8, 2021, U.S. EPA issued a Stop Sale, Use or Removal Order (SSURO) for SurfaceWise2, one of only two “durable” disinfectants that had been previously approved for emergency use. In August 2020, U.S. EPA issued the first ever Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodentcide Act (FIFRA) public health emergency waiver for a surface disinfectant,… Continue reading
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Industry Organization Challenges EPA Cross State Air Pollution Rule
As the saying goes, “no good neighbor rule goes unpunished.” Thus, the latest attempt by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) to promulgate a Revised Cross-State Air Pollution Rule (“CSAPR”) Update under the “good neighbor provision” of the Clean Air Act and in response to the D.C. Circuit’s remand of the previous version of the… Continue reading