More than 57% of businesses have potentially made misleading and deceptive environmental or sustainability claims
Guidance on Avoiding Greenwashing while Providing Input Down Under
Five State AGs Write Amicus Letter Concerning Environmental Settlement
On August 7, California Attorney General Rob Bonta led a coalition of five state attorneys general (AGs) in filing an amicus letter concerning a proposed class action settlement between DuPont, Chemours, and Corteva, and water providers for $1.185 billion. The AGs contend the settlement amount is far too low given the scope of environmental contamination and health impacts caused by Dupont’s decades-long manufacture and sale of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) compounds.
Nebraska and Iowa AGs Sue Biden Administration’s EPA for Failing to Fulfill Sale of Year-Round E15 Gasoline
On August 7, Nebraska Attorney General (AG) Mike Hilgers and Iowa AG Brenna Bird joined forces to sue the Biden administration’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for failing to fulfill the request by Iowa and Nebraska governors to allow the sale of year-round E15 gasoline.
Asia Regulators’ Responses to the ISSB Disclosure Standards
The inaugural International Sustainability Standards Board (“ISSB“) sustainability disclosure standards, namely IFRS S1 (General Requirements for Disclosure of Sustainability-related Financial Information) and IFRS S2 (Climate-related Disclosures) (the “ISSB Standards“), have received positive feedback from stakeholders across the globe since its issuance on 26 June 2023 (which we reported here). This includes endorsement by the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) on 25 July 2023.
The long-awaited ISSB Standards are intended to serve as a global baseline for transparent, reliable and comparable corporate disclosure of climate and sustainability-related information, and will help to inform investment decisions. In this blog post, we summarise several Asian regulators’ responses to the ISSB Standards which have been positive.
Property Taxpayers – Check your Proposed Assessments Before the Deadline!
The property tax “open rolls” period is here for Louisiana taxpayers. While this annual inspection period is important in any year, legislation which took effect in 2022 has altered the process of appealing a parish assessor’s valuation determination. Therefore, it is critical for taxpayers to take early and appropriate action.
The “open rolls” period in any
Defining America’s Wetlands: The Supreme Court’s Decision in Sackett v. EPA
On May 25, 2023, the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of landowners seeking to build a modest home on “wetlands” in Sackett v. EPA. This ruling represents not only a clarification of a major law relevant to companies seeking to develop land near water bodies, but also a significant limitation on the EPA’s
OSHA Issues Heat Hazard Alert Reminding Employers to Protect Workers Against Heat Illness and Injury – States are Following Suit
By James L. Curtis, Brent I. Clark, Adam R. Young, A. Scott Hecker, Patrick D. Joyce, Benjamin D. Briggs, Mark A. Lies, Daniel R. Birnbaum, and Craig B. Simonsen
Seyfarth Synopsis: The U.S. Department of Labor recently announced that OSHA has issued a heat hazard alert
Fourth District Belatedly Publishes CEQA Opinion Upholding City of Newport Beach’s Approval of Multifamily-Housing Development Pursuant To Addendum To 2006 EIR For Larger Mixed-Use Development
On July 7, 2023, following a request for publication made on behalf of the California Building Industry Association, the Building Industry Association of the Bay Area, and the California Business Properties Association, the Fourth District Court of Appeal ordered published its decision originally filed on June 8, 2023, affirming the trial court’s judgment upholding a Newport Beach multifamily project approval against various CEQA challenges. Olen Properties Corp. v. City of Newport Beach (2023) 93 Cal.App.5th 270.
Second District Affirms Judgment Voiding CEQA Infill Exemption For Hollywood Hotel Project That Would Demolish Affordable Housing Units Because City Deemed Inapplicable And Never Considered Project’s Consistency With General Plan Housing Element Policies To Preserve Affordable Housing
In an opinion filed June 28, 2023, and later ordered published on July 25, 2023, the Second District Court of Appeal (Div. 5) affirmed a judgment granting a writ of mandate setting aside (1) the City of Los Angeles’ (City) approval of a 10-story hotel project (with three levels of subterranean parking) to be located on a half-acre site in the Hollywood Community Plan area, and (2) the City’s accompanying determination that the hotel project was exempt under CEQA’s Class 32 categorical exemption for infill projects. Because the hotel project would result in the demolition of 40 apartments subject to the City’s rent stabilization ordinance (RSO), and the City failed to consider whether it was consistent with “all applicable general plan policies” – including Housing Element policies to preserve affordable housing – the record failed to contain substantial evidence supporting City’s use of the exemption. United Neighborhoods for Los Angeles v. City of Los Angeles (Fariborz Moshfegh, et al., Real Parties in Interest) (2023) 93 Cal.App.5th 1074.
Greenberg Traurig’s Giuliano Apadula to Speak at Brownfields 2023
Giuliano Apadula, a shareholder in Greenberg Traurig, LLP’s Environmental Practice in Philadelphia, will speak at Brownfields 2023 Friday, August 11 at 9:00 a.m. The conference will be held in Detroit this year.
The annual conference brings together stakeholders from industry, government, and the community to discuss the remediation and redevelopment of contaminated