Articles on Environmental Law

The confused state of the useful product defense By Jeffrey M. Pollock Environmental and Natural Resources Law, January 2004 CERCLA section 107(a)(3) provides that a person is liable for the disposal of a hazardous substance. Specifically, any person who "arranged for disposal . . . of hazardous substances owned by such person" is covered by the broad grasp of CERCLA liability.
Environmental insurance success By Raymond T. Reott Environmental and Natural Resources Law, January 2004 Experienced practitioners representing industrial entities know that the comprehensive general liability ("CGL") insurance policies purchased by those entities often can be used to provide coverage for various types of environmental claims.
The use of TMDLs to regulate nonpoint sources of water pollution By Jorge Mihalopoulos Environmental and Natural Resources Law, January 2004 A nonpoint source of water pollution is generally understood to be pollution in the form of runoff from farming, ranching, forestry and land development activities.
The tide rises once again: Definition of wetlands revisited By James K. Weston Mineral Law, December 2003 A recent Virginia case, Treacy v. Newdunn Associates, analyzed once again the definition of "navigable waters" under the Clean Water Act.
The process of siting a municipal waste transfer station or landfill By David W. McArdle October 2003 Siting municipal or county waste transfer stations and landfills presents unusual problems for local governments.
“Des Plaines trilogy” takes another hit: Second District tackles running battle between North Shore Sanitary District and City of Waukegan By Phillip R. Van Ness Environmental and Natural Resources Law, August 2003 Recent news reports that the Hatfield and McCoy clans have formally entered a "peace treaty" to end their decades-long feud now shifts the mantel of legendary ongoing tiff to Waukegan.
Fees, fees and more fees: The price of permits has just gotten pricier By Claire A. Manning Environmental and Natural Resources Law, August 2003 In an attempt to resolve the state's current budget crisis, the Governor and Illinois' 93rd General Assembly passed whopping fee increases, many of them on environmental fees and permits, substantially increasing the cost of doing business in this state.
Legislative update: Environmental legislation from the 93rd General Assembly By Claire A. Manning & Kevin B. Hynes Environmental and Natural Resources Law, August 2003 While the 93rd General Assembly was plagued with perhaps the most significant budget crisis in Illinois' history, it nonetheless found time to pass several serious pieces of environmental legislation, amending the Environmental Protection Act both procedurally and substantively.
The process of siting a municipal waste transfer station or landfill By David W. McArdle Local Government Law, August 2003 Siting municipal or county waste transfer stations and landfills presents unusual problems for local governments.
Four phone calls about the Clean Air Act that lawyers should be able to handle By Eric E. Boyd Environmental and Natural Resources Law, June 2003 It is almost five o'clock, and you receive a call from your client with a Clean Air Act question.
Recent Clean Air Act developments By Eric E. Boyd Environmental and Natural Resources Law, June 2003 After two and a half years of litigation, the U.S. EPA recently issued Guidance on the Definition of Federally Permitted Releases for Certain Air Emissions.
Superfund liability changes By Raymond T. Reott Environmental and Natural Resources Law, June 2003 Last year saw a major revision of the federal Superfund Program with several important changes in the liability standards. Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act, P.L. 107 ­ 118 (2002).
Environmental alert—Can you handle basic emergency calls from your client company? By Eric E. Boyd Corporate Law Departments, March 2003 It's almost five o'clock, and you receive a call from your client with a Clean Air Act question.
The Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO) revised rule By Michael R. Berman Environmental and Natural Resources Law, February 2003 On December 16, 2002, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (U.S. EPA) announced a final rule that will require all large Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations (CAFOs) to obtain permits that will ensure they protect America's waters from wastewater and manure.
LUST in the Legislature By Kyle Rominger Environmental and Natural Resources Law, February 2003 Among the legislation signed into law in 2002 were two Public Acts amending the Illinois Leaking Underground Storage Tank (LUST) Program.
The pros & cons of environmental auditing By David B. Wilcoxen Environmental and Natural Resources Law, February 2003 Do you counsel a large company or public organization that maintains numerous facilities engaged in a variety of industrial, commercial, and research operations?
U.S. EPA underground storage tank program: The new millenium, MTBE, and the future By Thomas J. Kenney Environmental and Natural Resources Law, February 2003 When Congress amended the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976 (RCRA)2 in 1984, it created the statutory authority for the federal regulation of underground storage tanks (USTs).
City of Springfield v. Hashman: 4th District says close enough is good enough By Gene Schmittgens & Anna Chesser Smith Environmental and Natural Resources Law, December 2002 In City of Springfield v. Hashman, 774 N.E.2d 427, 266 Ill.Dec. 321 (July 29, 2002), the appellate court for the Fourth District enjoined the development of a 22.408-acre parcel of land located outside the limits of the City of Springfield but within 200 feet of Lake Springfield, the primary water supply of the City and Sangamon County.
Clerk’s Office On-Line: Illinois Pollution Control Board’s “COOL” By Claire A. Manning & Richard R. McGill Environmental and Natural Resources Law, December 2002 Ever since its introduction at the Illinois Pollution Control Board's 25th anniversary in Chicago in 1995, the Board's Web site has become a widely-used resource.
Enviro-Science e-Print Service offers help in environmental research Environmental and Natural Resources Law, December 2002 The Enviro-Science e-Print Service is a multi-agency project of DOE's Environmental Management Science Program (EMSP), the U.S. EPA Office of Research and Development, content partners, and sponsors.
“Up the ladder” or “up the creek”? Environmental counsel and the strange new world of Sarbanes-Oxley By Phillip R. Van Ness Environmental and Natural Resources Law, December 2002 In an earlier edition of this newsletter, we advised readers that the environmental practitioner may find himself/herself entangled in the attorney regulatory rules to be promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in response to the so-called Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (Public Law No. 107-204) (the Act).
The confusing rules of natural resource damage assessments By Christine A. Picker Environmental and Natural Resources Law, November 2002 The natural resource damage assessment rules provide for the conduct of natural resource damage assessments under CERCLA and the Clean Water Act. 43 C.F.R. part 11.
Electronic waste: A growing problem By Raymond T. Reott Environmental and Natural Resources Law, November 2002 In the early 1970s, as businesses installed scrubbers and other air pollution control devices to meet Clean Air Act requirements and water treatment facilities to meet new Clean Water Act requirements, the result was to shift captured contaminants from air emissions and water discharges to landfills.
Novel settlement: A new trend? By Raymond T. Reott Environmental and Natural Resources Law, November 2002 In an election year, the historic practice in Illinois was for environmental enforcement to increase and for penalty demands in negotiated settlements to rise proportionately.
A quick look at enforcement provisions of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act By Lisle A. Stalter Environmental and Natural Resources Law, November 2002 The purpose of the Illinois Environmental Protection Act is "to establish a unified, statewide program supplemented by private remedies, to restore, protect and enhance the quality of the environment, and to assure the adverse effects upon the environment are fully considered and borne by those who cause them," 415 ILCS 5/2(b).
Donaldson v. CIPS: a case of pennywise, pound foolish? By James K. Weston, Sr. Environmental and Natural Resources Law, October 2002 The Illinois Supreme Court recently decided the case of Zachary Donaldson, et al., v. Central Illinois Public Service Company, et al., Docket No. 89679, opinion filed February 22, 2002.
Environmental attorneys may catch chill from new corporate ethics legislation By Phillip R. Van Ness Environmental and Natural Resources Law, October 2002 They say an ill wind blows no good, and environmental practitioners may find themselves in the midst of a gale.
IERRC scores first “win” in drive to update the Illinois Environmental Protection Act By Phillip R. Van Ness Environmental and Natural Resources Law, October 2002 As most readers of this newsletter know, Governor Ryan created the Illinois Environmental Regulatory Review Commission (IERRC) by Executive Order #18 in December of 1999.
In this issue Environmental and Natural Resources Law, October 2002 This month's newsletter covers current developments in the courts, in Congress and in the Illinois Statehouse.
Of peekaboo bonds and offers of proof: Court affirms Pollution Control Board holding that EPA not barred from denying landfill permit due to dropped surety By Phillip R. Van Ness Environmental and Natural Resources Law, October 2002 Sometimes a company's environmental problems aren't related to the environment at all. Witness a recent (May 15, 2002) Third District case, Community Landfill Company v. Pollution Control Board.

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