On July 13, 2022, The Chemours Company FC, LLC (“Chemours”) filed a Petition for Review with the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals challenging the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”)’s Health Advisory Level (“HAL”) of 10 ppt for HFPO Dimer Acid, a.k.a. GenX, alleging that the HAL is based on a “deeply flawed, scientifically
California Supreme Court Denies Depublication Requests In Livermore CEQA Case Addressing “No Project” Alternative
On July 13, 2022, the California Supreme Court denied numerous depublication requests with respect to, and declined to review on its own motion, the First District Court of Appeal’s decision in Save the Hill Group v. City of Livermore (2022) 76 Cal.App.5th 1092, S. Ct. Case No. S274754; Ct. App. Case No. A161573. My May 26, 2022 post on the League of Cities’ and CSAC’s depublication requests, which were shortly thereafter followed by further depublication requests by Respondent City of Livermore and the California Building Industry Association, can be found here, and my April 4, 2022 post analyzing the Court of Appeal’s opinion which can be found here.
USPTO Rolls Out the Climate Change Mitigation Pilot Program in Response to Executive Order 14008 on Climate Change
The Biden Administration’s attempt to tackle the climate crisis has made its way to the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO). Executive Order 14008, dated January 27, 2021, stated “domestic action [on climate change] must go hand in hand with United States international leadership, aimed at significantly enhancing global action,” and called on government agencies to take action.[1] In response, this June, the USPTO unveiled the Climate Change Mitigation Pilot Program (the Pilot Program) in response to Executive Order 14008. The Pilot Program “is designed to positively impact the climate by accelerating examination of patent applications for innovations that reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”[2]
Ending Single-gender Boards in Hong Kong Companies
In our blog post here, we discussed the amendments to the Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited’s (SEHK) Corporate Governance Code and Listing Rules, which prohibit single-gender boards among listed companies and IPO applicants in Hong Kong, effective from January 1, 2022. Existing issuers with single-gender boards will have a three-year transition period to
New Greenwashing Case is Troubling to Future of ESG
This overseas litigation is troubling because at its core the theory of the case is apocalyptic environmentalism
EPA Expands List of PFAS Subject to Toxic Release Inventory Reporting
Earlier this week, on July 18, 2022, U.S. EPA issued a final rule that subjects five new per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (“PFAS”) to the Toxics Release Inventory (“TRI”) reporting requirements under Section 313 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (“EPCRA”). The listings are automatic and not subject to notice-and-comment rulemaking under the authority
Change on the Horizon for Gulf of Mexico Energy Production
The Gulf of Mexico has long been home to offshore energy development, but with President Biden’s call to advance offshore wind development, a new change is potentially coming to the horizon—wind farms. At the helm of Gulf wind development is the Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, who has now announced the solicitation of public comments on two potential wind energy areas off the coasts of Texas and Louisiana and the related environmental assessment for the entire Gulf Call Area.
The Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment publishes its 2022 global trends in climate litigation report
Litigation is increasingly being used as a means of advancing – or delaying – effective climate action.
As discussed in our recent legal update on the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment’s 2021 Global Trends in Climate Change Litigation Policy Report (the “2021 Report“), between 2015 and 2021, there was a marked increase in the number of such climate-related cases being brought against private sector actors. This reflects the growing recognition by prospective litigants of litigation as an effective means of influencing the actions private sector actors are taking to address climate change.
Most recently, the London School of Economics’ Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment’s 2022 Global Trends in Climate Change Litigation Policy Report (the “2022 Report“) confirms that litigation against private sector actors continues to expand as an avenue for climate action. We discuss the trends identified in the 2022 Report in this blog post.
EPA Audit Policy Update – Scrutiny of Voluntary Self-Disclosures Set to Increase
The EPA intends to increase its review of voluntary self-disclosures of violations submitted electronically under EPA’s Audit Policy. The EPA Office of Inspector General (OIG) recently issued a report detailing the results of an evaluation of EPA’s process for screening self-reported environmental violations made through its eDisclosure system. The OIG’s report concluded that EPA
Fatal Falls in Construction Account For More Than Half of All Work-Related Falls Nationally
By Adam R. Young, A. Scott Hecker, James L. Curtis, and Craig B. Simonsen
Seyfarth Synopsis: NIOSH reports in its recent Science Blog that “falls are the leading cause of death among construction workers.”
NIOSH notes that each year roughly 300–400 construction workers fall to their deaths, most often while working