Environmental Due Diligence

OER Launches Revised Searchable Property Environmental E-Database (SPEED 2.0)

Brownfields, CERCLA, Corporate and Real Estate Transactions, Environmental Due Diligence, Hazardous Waste, Navigation Law, New York Brownfield Cleanup Program, NY State Superfund, NYC OER, oil spills, PCBs, Underground Storage Tanks, vapor intrusion / By

The New York City Office of Environmental Remediation released an update to its Searchable Property Environmental E-Database (SPEED 2.0) environmental mapping tool in April. SPEED is a useful due diligence tool that allows users to obtain environmental information at a city, borough, neighborhood or site level. All of SPEED’s data is regularly updated to provide […]

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EPA Issues Guidance For Continuing or Suspending Response Actions During COVID-19 Crisis

Brownfields, CERCLA, enforcement, Environmental Due Diligence, Hazardous Waste, oil spills, PCBs, Underground Storage Tanks, vapor intrusion, Water Pollution / By

In our post discussing EPA’s Enforcement Discretion guidance, we mentioned that EPA was working on guidance for performing remedial actions during the Covid-19 crisis. On April 10th, EPA issued its “Interim Guidance on Site Field Work Decisions Due to Impacts of COVID-19” (Interim Guidance) to regional offices when determining to continue, reduce, or pause on-site

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Revised ESD Essential Services Guidance Appears to Include Phase 1 Reports and End Confusion for Consultants

Brownfields, CERCLA, Corporate and Real Estate Transactions, Environmental Due Diligence, Hazardous Waste, New York Brownfield Cleanup Program, NY State Superfund / By

As we discussed in a prior Post, the Empire State Development Corporation (ESD) issued a guidance document that were exempt from  Governor Cuomo’s  Executive Order 202.8 banning non-essential services from operating to control the spread of the covid19 virus. In response, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (“NYSDEC”) issued its own Guidance describing the

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

Air Pollution, CERCLA, Corporate and Real Estate Transactions, Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities, enforcement, Environmental Due Diligence, Hazardous Waste, oil spills, Water Pollution / By

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

Air Pollution, Corporate and Real Estate Transactions, Environmental Due Diligence, Hazardous Waste, oil spills, Underground Storage Tanks, water, Water Pollution, wetlands / By

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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Consultants in Bank Lawsuit Saved by the (Statute of Limitations) Bell

CERCLA, consultant malpractice, Environmental Due Diligence / By

Christmas arrived early for two environmental consulting firms when a federal district court ruled in Bank United, N.A. v. Merritt Environmental Consulting Corp, 2018 U.S. Dist. Lexis 214448 (S.D.N.Y. 12/20/2018) that a lender had waited too long to file a complaint against the consultants for failing to identify radioactive contamination in a phase 1 environmental

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JP Morgan Chase Actually Acquired “Toxic” Assets During the Great Recession

CERCLA, Environmental Due Diligence, Lender Liability / By

During the Great Recessions, the term “toxic assets” became a cliché. It was used to describe loans and other financial instruments that had fallen significantly and for which there is no longer a functioning market. The presence of these so-called toxic assets on their balance sheets caused many banks to fail. As it turned out,

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Remedial Program Reform Proposals for EPA Administrator Pruitt

Brownfields, CERCLA, Corporate and Real Estate Transactions, Disclosure of Environmental Liabilities, Environmental Due Diligence, Hazardous Waste, Lender Liability, PCBs / By

Regulatory reform is at the centerpiece of the Trump Administration’s plan to stimulate economic growth. During the presidential campaign, candidate Trump vowed to rollback a variety of Obama Administration Climate Change Initiatives but said little about EPA remedial programs such as the federal Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA or superfund). Based on

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THE TEN COMMANDMENTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL LAW

Corporate and Real Estate Transactions, Environmental Due Diligence / By

The collective wit and wisdom from three decades of practicing environmental law (in no order of importance). 1.Thou shall not call the environmental lawyer the day before the closing 2. Thou shall not accept without further inquiry a Phase 1 reports that says there are no RECs 3. Thou shall be concerned when the Phase

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