Air Pollution

EPA Issues Enforcement Discretion Memo for Routine Civil Violations Arising from COVID-19 Pandemic

Update: EPA has created a frequently-asked questions about covid-19 webpage that is available Here. The federal Environmental Protection Agency has issued a Memo announcing that it will temporarily exercise enforcement discretion for certain civil violations where the non-compliance was a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Contrary to news articles in such publications  as E&E News, The […]

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New DEC Interactive Map Expedites Environmental Due Diligence

Performing environmental due diligence has become easier with the launch of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation DECInfo Locator. Until the launch of this website, consultants and attorneys seeking information about contaminated sites had to file requests under the state Freedom of Information Law (FOIL). The limited NYSDEC FOIL staff usually took weeks

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Ct Finds Reheater Replacement Projects Triggered New Source Review

In United States v. La. Generating, LLC, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 134195 (M.D. La. 9/19/12), a federal district court ruled that reheater replacement projects for a coal-fired power plant did not qualify for the Routine Maintenance, Repair and Replacement (RMRR) exception to the New Source Review (NSR) program. As a result, the defendant who acquired the coal plant

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Documerica Project Captures Environmental Images From 1970s

New York City enjoyed classic fall weather last week with cloudless skies and crisp temperatures. Depending on how high your office or apartment was located, you could see all the way down to New York Harbor, see Yankee Stadium in the Bronx or Citifield where the Mets play. On days like these, it is hard

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Tough Summer for EPA and Administrative Law Professors

The dog days of August  have been particularly cruel to EPA and law professors who are teaching administrative law this semester. In August alone, there separate federal appeals court vacated high profile Clean Air Act initiatives of EPA. The decisions were stunning for their lack of deference to EPA’s interpretations of its Clean Air Act

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Court Rejects EPA Challenge to State BACT Determination for Coal Power Plant

The Clean Air Act imposes an alphabet soup of emission control technologies on owners and operators of stationary sources. Depending on the regulatory program and air pollutants, a facility may have to comply with BACT, BART, BDT, GACT, LAER, MACT and RACT. While the process of identifying the applicable emission standard is largely a technical

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Court Rules Purchaser of Coal Plant Assets Acquired “Free and Clear” Is Liable For Pre-Closing NSR Violations

A federal district court ruled that purchaser of a coal-fired power plant was held liable as a successor for violations of the New Source Review program that had occurred prior to the transaction. The court said the purchaser had expressly assumed the liabilities even though the order of the bankruptcy court approving the sale provided

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Regulatory Re-Interpretation Triggers Contractual Indemnity

Historical environmental compliance is critically important in corporate transactions especially when a business or facility may be subject to a regulatory programs that is evolving or subject to re-interpretation such as the New Source Review program. In such cases, the parties will try to contractually allocate the risks. Despite the fact that these agreements are

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Ct Says Federal Statute of Limitations Bars New Source Review Violations

In US v Ameren Missouri, 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 152426 (E.D.Mo. 1/27/12), the federal government alleged that the defendant had violated the Clean Air Act and the State Implementation Plan (SIP) when it performed major modifications for a coal-fired power plant without first undergoing new source review (NSR) for prevention of significant deterioriation (PSD). EPA

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