Taylor Research Group (TRG) recently attended the Environmental Law Institute’s (ELI) monthly PFAS webinar briefing, and we are eager to share our key takeaways from a very timely and informative panel session. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will designate Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA) and Perfluorooctanesulfonic Acid (PFOS) as CERCLA hazardous substances any day now, so the panelists focused on the policy implications of this forthcoming designation. The theme that resonated most for TRG is that industrial firms (and their in-house or outside legal counsel) should prepare now to limit their potential liability costs.
PFAS: When Confronted With Potential Liability, Know Your History
Last month, on the heels of our trilogy of blogs related to the Impact of PFAS on Environmental Litigation (Virtual) Conference hosted by Perrin Conferences, TRG attended a subsequent PFAS webinar, which is the subject of this week’s blog.
“Do the Homework on Corporate History” was one of six key takeaway points from the Identification of PFAS Sites and Questions of Legal and Insurance Coverage webinar hosted by Perrin Conferences. The webinar cautioned that, while companies attempting to understand their liability often turn first to insurance archaeology, instead their initial step should be to fully understand their own corporate history and how they became liable in the first place. The webinar pointed out that sales, acquisitions, and mergers all may have affected liability, as well as any active insurance policies.
PFAS: Bold Actions by EPA Expected to Create New Liabilities
When it comes to PFAS contamination liability, be proactive. That was one of several important messages conveyed at the Impact of PFAS on Environmental Litigation (Virtual) Conference hosted by Perrin Conferences, which Taylor Research Group (TRG) recently attended. Readers familiar with TRG’s work will know that research into PFAS end-product usage and disposal has been one of our specialties for many years now. Yet within environmental law these chemicals—the best known and most infamous being PFOS and PFOA*—have existed in a sort of limbo.
Historical Research Sheds Light on Superfund Cases
Implications of the Clean Power Plan on Historical Research
We’ve been closely tracking litigation related to the EPA’s proposed Clean Power Plan (CPP), which seeks to reduce carbon pollution from power plants and includes state-by-state mandates. Recently, the Supreme Court stayed the implementation of the plan until the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit completes its review.
Understanding the Historical Environmental Story Behind the EPA’s Animas River Spill
It’s been over a week since the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) inadvertently released an estimated three million tons of toxic wastewater into the Animas River, which temporarily turned the river orange. The long term effects on the 126 mile-long waterway that flows south from Colorado’s San Juan Mountains to Farmington, New Mexico where it joins with the San Juan River, are yet to be discovered.
Fracking: A Historical Research Perspective
The business of natural gas production has been booming over the last decade thanks to recent technological improvements, namely horizontal drilling coupled with hydraulic fracturing (commonly referred to as fracking). This has given energy companies the ability to extract unconventional natural gas from previously impermeable shale rock formations.