About

Viktoriia assists clients in complying with environmental laws and regulations, including permitting and strategizing on implementation of environmental requirements. She also represents them in litigation matters and advises on various aspects of environmental due diligence. Her practice encompasses all of the major environmental statutes, including the Clean Water Act, Endangered Species Act, Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, Clean Air Act, Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act, and corresponding regulations.

Changes to Migratory Bird Treaty Act Program Announced

October 7, 2021

On October 4, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) published a revision of its interpretation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). With the final rule, FWS has effectively reinstated its position that “incidental take” — the harming or killing that results from, but is not the purpose of, carrying out an otherwise lawful activity — is prohibited by the MBTA, and persons that cause incidental take can be prosecuted criminally. FWS’s final rule represents a reversal of a Trump-era interpretation of the MBTA, which narrowly interpreted liability under the statute to apply only to those actions specifically “directed at” migratory birds that “reduce animals to human control.” See previous post covering the prior rule.