Environmental Law Matters Blog | Burr & Forman LLP

Alabama Pushes Back on EPA Proposed CCR Program Denial

Schuyler K. Espy — Thu, 26 Oct 2023 09:00:01 -0400

In early August 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a proposed denial of Alabama’s permit program to manage coal combustion residuals (CCR) in landfills and surface impoundments within the state. The decision evidently came as a surprise to the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (ADEM), the environmental regulatory agency that intends to manage Alabama’s CCR permitting program, as ADEM had been communicating and working with EPA on CCR program efforts for several years prior to the announcement. In addition, other states that have ...

Alabama Landfill Local Approval Bill Passes

Schuyler K. Espy — Wed, 31 May 2023 09:00:02 -0400

A bill amending the Alabama Solid Wastes and Recyclable Materials Management Act by specifying when local approval of solid waste disposal permit modifications is necessary has passed both houses of the Alabama Legislature and is now law.

Under Act Number 2023-290, local governing body review and approval of permit modifications for landfills will be required only when the landfill seeks to:

Increase the service area.
Convert from an industrial or construction and demolition landfill into a municipal solid waste landfill, or convert from a construction and demolition landfill ...

Legislation Seeks to Expand Alabama Brownfields Program

Schuyler K. Espy — Wed, 26 Apr 2023 09:00:03 -0400

This week a bill was introduced in the Alabama Legislature which would expand the state’s Brownfield Redevelopment and Voluntary Cleanup Program through the implementation of new features aimed to increase participation in the Program, thereby returning more brownfields to productive use and enhancing economic growth. Key features of the proposed amendments to the Alabama Land Recycling and Economic Redevelopment Act include the following.

Allowing Potentially Responsible Persons to be Entitled to Certain Liability Protections Through Voluntary Cleanup Program ...

New Tennessee Brownfield Legislation May Open Opportunities

William L. "Bill" Penny — Mon, 27 Mar 2023 09:00:04 -0400

Tennessee’s new Brownfield legislation proposed by Governor Bill Lee provides significant incentives for acquisition of contaminated property. The legislation envisions three new areas of concentration for brownfield redevelopment: The amendments to Tenn. Code Ann. § 7-3-312 and 316 include changes to eligibility for the tax increment financing (TIF) funding and additional qualified costs. It will remove the restriction that the TIF is available only for urban brownfield projects in eligible zones. It will also include the cost of acquisition and cost related to ...

Waters of the United States: Back to the Future

William L. "Bill" Penny — Tue, 10 Jan 2023 09:00:05 -0500

On December 30, 2022, EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) (together the Agencies) issued a prepublication version of the latest definition of Waters of the United States (WOTUS). It will become effective when published in the Federal Register in 60 days. The Preamble to the new Rule describes a somewhat monumental comment period, including a review of more than 120,000 comments and listening sessions with various groups, and virtual calls with state governments. Yet, after all of that, the Agencies decided that what they had been doing for the past 45 years was quite fine ...

EPA Continues its Journey Down the PFAS Road(map)

Schuyler K. Espy — Wed, 07 Dec 2022 09:00:06 -0500

On December 5, 2022, the U.S. EPA issued a memorandum entitled, Addressing PFAS Discharges in NPDES Permits and Through the Pretreatment Program and Monitoring Programs. The memorandum “provides EPA’s guidance to states and updates the April 28, 2022 guidance to EPA Regions for addressing PFAS discharges when they are authorized to administer the NPDES permitting program and/or pretreatment program.” The memorandum reaffirms EPA’s focus on its PFAS Strategic Roadmap commitments, recommending a number of steps permit writers can implement “to reduce the discharge ...

Alabama Incorporating PFAS Requirements into Permits for Certain Industrial Categories

Schuyler K. Espy — Wed, 02 Nov 2022 09:00:07 -0400

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or “PFAS,” as they have come to be known, are a category of widely-used and long-lasting chemicals found in many consumer, commercial, and industrial products. The human health and environmental risks of PFAS are not fully understood; however, some scientific studies suggest that exposure to high levels of certain PFAS may lead to adverse health effects. While many states, including Alabama, do not have numeric water quality criteria for PFAS, state environmental agencies are taking steps to address PFAS in the environment – ...

EPA Announces Effort to Streamline TSCA Review of Chemicals Used in Electric Vehicle, Semi-conductor, and Clean Energy Sectors

Schuyler K. Espy — Mon, 17 Oct 2022 09:00:08 -0400

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced that it will provide more efficient review of certain materials used in Electric Vehicle, Semi-conductor, and Clean Energy Sectors. EPA implements the New Chemicals Program pursuant to its authority under Section 5 of the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA). Under this Program, EPA assesses “new” chemical substances (i.e., those that are not on the TSCA inventory), and identifies conditions to be placed on their use before they are entered into commerce. Anyone who intends to manufacture or import a new chemical ...

Supreme Court Says EPA Went Too Far on Regulating Climate Change

William L. "Bill" Penny — Fri, 01 Jul 2022 09:00:09 -0400

On June 29, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that an arcane portion of the Clean Air Act (“CAA”), infrequently used by the EPA, could not serve as appropriate delegation of legislative authority to regulate greenhouse gas. West Virginia v. EPA (No. 20-1530, June 2022). In the 6-3 decision, the Court found the EPA had no congressional authority to require the United States power sector to reallocate its power generation from existing power plants to newer cleaner sources of energy, such as wind, solar and natural gas, to achieve “best system of emission reduction (“BSER).” ...

U.S. Department of Justice Issues New Policy on SEPs

William L. "Bill" Penny — Mon, 09 May 2022 09:00:10 -0400

The U.S. Department of Justice issued new guidelines on May 5, 2022, for supplemental environmental projects (SEPs) as part of a settlement in civil matters. The Trump administration halted nearly all SEPs in 2017 because of the concern that settlements involving payments to third parties were not reasonably related to the violation, and were a tool for third parties to obtain funding and other benefits they could not get but for the SEP. In 2020, Attorney General Barr clarified the policy by saying payments to non-governmental third-parties “if properly structured,” do not ...