In mid-December, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued final rules that the Agency said are intended to facilitate the management of carbon dioxide gas that is required to be captured from electric power plants. Summaries of the regulations and links to them can be found here and here. The rules are intended to support rules on carbon pollution standards for new power plants, which were published earlier this year in draft form and have not yet become final. Those draft regulations have been criticized for a number of reasons, including an assertion by industry that they ...
In June, President Obama directed the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to propose standards regulating greenhouse gas emissions ("GHG") from existing power plants. The requirements would be imposed under Section 111(d) of the Federal Clean Air Act. Under the directive, the EPA is to propose such standards no later than June 2014 using a process that would require individual states to submit plans no later than June 30, 2016, explaining to the EPA how the states will implement those standards. The prospect of these regulations is expected to focus directly on the use of coal as a ...
On November 18, the Board of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources postponed a vote scheduled for December 3 on rules changes that, if approved, could expand the state's hog industry by raising the threshold for stricter environmental controls on hog operations from 7,500 to 12,500 hogs per facility. DNR indicated that the proposed rule changes would be subject to further review and study. For more information on environmental law topics, please contact one of the Burr & Forman team members for assistance. We are happy to answer any questions or concerns you may have.
A significant issue in the recent federal government shut down was the fundamental question over the scope of government authority and its role in a wide range of activities. In short, should there be any government involvement with respect to particular issues? While the shut down focused most directly on the federal healthcare program, similar questions have been raised both about Congressional enactments over things such as environmental protection, and the scope of those enactments as reflected by regulation. These policy and practical issues are playing out now with respect ...
In an article recently posted at mondaq.com, Richard Stobbe provides several excellent examples of why employers should consult with their counsel when drafting trade secrets and confidentiality agreements, instead of copying cookie-cutter examples found on the internet. In his article, Keeping Secrets: Trade Secrets and Confidentiality Agreements, Stobbe notes that many "off-the-shelf" agreements are drafted with terms that do not apply to the employer's business or the specific transaction, or apply another state's laws. Also, many form agreements define key terms ...
Following new state legislation granting the Florida Department of Environmental Protection ("FDEP") the authority to establish one statewide rule for the environmental resource permitting ("ERP") program, FDEP in early October finalized the new rule -Chapter 62-330. Previously, Florida's five water management districts implemented different versions of rules addressing impacts to wetlands and surface waters. An ERP permit is required for certain activities that cause water pollution or affect wetlands and other surface waters. The new rule is now applied statewide ...
The board of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources will consider changes to rules for permit requirements for swine feeding operations. The most significant change proposed is to increase the threshold for triggering the requirement to obtain a permit from Georgia EPD under the Georgia Water Quality Control Act. Currently, a swine feeding operation is exempt from permitting if it manages less than 75,000 mature swine or 30,000 immature swine (less than 55 pounds). The proposed rule would increase the permit threshold to 12,500 mature or 50,000 immature swine. The proposed ...
On October 2, 2013, BP won a reprieve in its ongoing effort to tighten standards and slow claims payments by Claims Administrator Patrick Juneau. BP had asked the court to direct Mr. Juneau to halt payments that did meet stricter standards. At stake for the oil company may be billions of dollars in additional settlement claim payments. The Fifth Circuit agreed in part with BP. In a 2-1 decision, the appellate court reversed the lower court and directed United States District Court Judge Carl Barbier to enter an injunction halting certain payments pending the court's review of the issues ...
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam has proclaimed Oct. 13 through October 19 Earth Science Week. In order to encourage studies of earth sciences, the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation's Tennessee Geological Survey, in partnership with the American Geosciences Institute, is distributing special toolkits to science teachers across the state. The kits include map resources and materials from the National Park Service, NASA, Soil Science Society of America, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Bureau of Land Management. The 2013 Earth Science Week theme is "Mapping ...
In mid-September, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers jointly submitted a proposed rule to the White House Office of Management and Budget intended to clarify which waters and wetlands are protected under the Clean Water Act. The proposed rule represents these agencies' latest effort to clarify the scope of federal jurisdiction under the CWA and thereby resolve long standing uncertainty about which water bodies and activities are regulated by the law. The proposal, if adopted, would likely have its most significant impact on small streams and ...
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