The United States Supreme Court issued a trilogy of significant administrative law cases in the last week of its 2023-24 term. The most important of these decisions for brownfield and superfund practitioners was Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, 2024 U.S. LEXIS 2882 (June 28, 2024) where the Court abandoned its 40-year old “Chevron” doctrine that […]
SCOTUS Ends Chevron Deference-The Wicked Witch is Dead Read More »
A federal court found there were triable issues if a purchaser qualified as a bona fide prospective purchaser (BFPP) because of alleged flaws in a phase 1 environmental site assessment. In Stratus Redtail Ranch LLC v. IBM, 2022 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 8723 (D. Col. 1/18/22), the plaintiff had acquired a 290-acre parcel of agricultural land
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (“NYSDEC”) has release proposed revisions to its CP-51 Soil Cleanup Guidance. This polcy which was first issued in 2010 describes procedures for developing soil cleanup levels for contaminants not otherwise listed in the seven sets of Soil Cleanup Objective (SCOs) set forth in 6 NYCRR Part 375.
NYSDEC Proposes Revisions to Commissioner’s Policy (CP)-51 Soil Cleanup Guidance Read More »
Some of the more interesting CERCLA cases involve lawsuits between current and former property owners. Usually, the current owner assumes it qualifies as bona fide prospective purchaser (BFPP) or for the Innocent Landowner (ILO) Defense and sues the defendant/former owner for cost recovery. The defendant/former owner invariably files counterclaims alleging the current owner/plaintiff is not
Much of the focus of the 2021 revisions to ASTM Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessment Standard E-1527 was to clarify the custom and practice for performing historical investigations-particularly for adjoining properties. Unfortunately, for an architectural firm that dabbled in the phase 1 marketplace these clarifications came too late. In Hathaway Homes, Phase II Limited Partnership
In a case that has been closely followed by participants in the environmental due diligence market, a magistrate judge has issued a report (2024 R&R) in Sanborn Library LLC v. Eris Information Inc., 2024 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 76134 (S.D.N.Y. March 25, 2024) recommending dismissing copyright infringement claims of The Sanborn Library LLC (SBL) against defendant
Magistrate Recommends Dismissing EDR Copyright Infringement Case Over Sanborn Maps Read More »
In February 2024, the New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) updated the decision matrices to its “Guidance for Evaluating Soil Vapor Intrusion in the State of New York” (” VI Guidance) to include 13 volatile petroleum compounds . Previously, the NYSDOH decision matrices only assessed potential human health risks for contaminated vapors associated with
NYSDOH Revises Vapor Intrusion Guidance to Add Volatile Petroleum Compounds Read More »
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (“NYSDEC”) presented a Valentine’s Day gift to brownfield developers and responsible parties when the New York State Register Published notice of the long awaited overhaul of the NYSDEC Part 375 regulations which govern the agency’s remedial programs. The actual regulatory language will be availabe on the NYSDEC
NYSDEC Publishes Notice of Draft Revisions to Part 375 Regulations in State Register Read More »
On September 22, 2023, Governor Hochul signed into law a bill that significantly amended the state Property Condition Disclosure Act (PCDA). The changes become effective on March 20, 2024. A The PCDA amends the traditional rule of caveat emptor which provides that a seller as no duty to disclose any information about a residential or
Governor Hochul Signs Bill Amending the Property Condition Disclosure Act Read More »
The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) has released for public comment a draft guidance that would for the first time establish Financial Assurance (FA) for certain state Superfund and Brownfield programs sites with remedies that require Operation, Maintenance and Monitoring (OM&M). The proposed DER #41 Proposed Guidance would apply to superfund and brownfield