On August 12, 2022, Congress passed the Inflation Reduction Act, which includes $369 billion in spending on climate action. The Act introduces a “waste emissions charge,” which makes companies who produce, transport, or store oil and gas pay for methane that leaks from their facilities into the atmosphere. The charge will start at $900.00 per…
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The Supreme Court recently decided a case related to the Clean Power Plan, an Obama-era regulatory scheme that would apply to the energy industry across the country. The main holding of the opinion in West Virginia v. EPA focused on the degree to which an administrative agency may assert power over the states, and by…
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On June 15, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released new drinking water health advisories for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). The EPA also announced $1 billion in funding to address PFAS and other emerging contaminants in drinking water. PFAS have been linked to infertility, thyroid problems, and several types of cancer. Since the…
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On May 5, 2022, Attorney General Merrick Garland and EPA Administrator Michael Regan released a memorandum entitled: “Actions to Advance Environmental Justice.” The memorandum from the Office of the Attorney General announces three actions to “secure environmental justice for all Americans.” First, the Justice Department issued a comprehensive environmental justice enforcement strategy to guide the…
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In Glynn Env’t Coal., Inc. v. Sea Island Acquisition, LLC, 26 F.4th 1235 (11th Cir. 2022), environmentalist Jane Fraser (“Fraser”) alleged that Sea Island Acquisition, LLC (“Sea Island”) filled wetlands with outside materials, diminishing her aesthetic interest in recreation and enjoyment of the natural beauty of the wetland. The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals held…
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In Louisiana v. Biden, 2022 WL 438313 (E.D. La. 2022), the States of Louisiana, Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, South Dakota, Texas, West Virginia, and Wyoming moved for a preliminary injunction to enjoin enforcement of an executive order that reinstated the Interagency Working Group on Social Costs of Greenhouse Gas Emissions (“IWG”) and ordered the…
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The Residents of Gordon Plaza, Inc. (“Gordon Plaza”) filed suit under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), 42 U.S.C. § 6972(a)(1)(B), against the Mayor of New Orleans LaToya Cantrell and the City of New Orleans (the “City”) for the City’s alleged targeting of African American residents for the sale of residential units without disclosing that…
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In W. Virginia State Univ. Bd. of Governors v. Dow Chem. Co., No. 20-1712, 2022 WL 90242 (4th Cir. Jan. 10, 2022), the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals held that it lacks federal jurisdiction over state law claims brought by West Virginia State University Board (“WSVU”) against Dow Chemical Company, Bayer Corporation, Bayer CropScience LP,…
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Plaintiff KMG-Bernuth, Inc., (“KMG”) operates a pentachlorophenol (“penta”) plant in Tuscaloosa which produces and stores liquid penta, an industrial wood preservative. Penta is a hazardous pesticide subject to Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) regulations. Defendant Ranger Environmental Services, LLC’s (“Ranger”) is an industrial cleaning and environmental services company based in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. On May 19, 2019, a…
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In 1971, President Richard Nixon cancelled construction of the Cross Florida Barge Canal in order to prevent permanent damage to the Ocklawaha River. By the time the Canal construction was cancelled, nearly one-third of the project was completed. The Rodman Dam (now the Kirkpatrick Dam) blocked the Ocklawaha River and created the Rodman Reservoir. The…
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