The “all appropriate inquiry” rules published by U.S. EPA will probably be updated by the end of the year to include a new standard for Phase I Assessments. The new standard will reflect a publication… Read More >
Contamination Migrating From Building Structural Component Not A CERCLA ‘Disposal’
Scenario: a corporate property owner constructs a building, coats it with a previously unknown carcinogen and many years later the property and assets of the owner are purchased by a company that merges with another… Read More >
What is the value of an environmental logo?
When the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) updated the Green Guides in October 2012, it specifically set forth its objections to the misuse of environmental certifications and seals of approval (or logos). The FTC made it… Read More >
Green Guides – Is it degradable or compostable?
In a previous blog we discussed the Federal Trade Commission’s (FTC) updates to the “Guides for the Use Environmental Marketing Claims,” 16CFR260 (the Green Guides) in October 2012. One of the more problematic areas for… Read More >
WHEN IT COMES TO MINERAL RIGHTS, “NO” MAY NOT MEAN “NO”
Can a property owner be forced to allow the removal of oil and gas from below the property? In Michigan, the answer could be “yes”, regardless of whether the owner consents to it or not. … Read More >
Redevelopments gone bad: An update on Ashley II of Charleston LLC v. PCS Nitrogen Inc.
In a previous post we reported on a case in the 4th Circuit, Ashley II of Charleston LLC v PCS Nitrogen Inc., that could have a chilling effect on developers interested in redeveloping contaminated property. … Read More >
Remembering D-Day, June 6, 1944.
A view of the English Channel from the American Cemetery above Omaha Beach, Normandy, France.
Michigan’s Local Program for Wellhead Protection
Michigan has a program for protecting a community’s drinking water quality that is implemented at the local level. This is referred to as Michigan’s Wellhead Protection Program (WHPP). The creation of WHPP was an outgrowth… Read More >