Russia’s unprovoked attack on the Ukraine has not been restricted to land. Ukrainian tech resources have been hit by cyber-attacks, particularly against its government and banking systems in a coordinated effort by Russia’s military intelligence unit.[1] Several websites of Ukrainian government departments and banks were hit with distributed denial of service attacks (DDoS), which
Zero Waste in an Era of Net Zero Everything
Conservations of resources is a key factor in ESG allowing a company to implement their goals for managing risk, saving money, reducing pollution, decreasing greenhouse gas emissions, and reinvesting resources locally, all adding value for the company, its community and the world.
CDC Eases Pandemic Mask Guidelines
By: James L. Curtis, Patrick D. Joyce, Adam R. Young, Melissa Ortega, and Craig B. Simonsen
Seyfarth Synopsis: On Friday, February 25, 2022, the CDC significantly eased COVID-19 mask guidelines. The new guidelines are based on COVID-19 community levels.
As the COVID-19 surge fueled by the Omicron variant began to
EPA Issues Proposed Rule Imposing More Stringent Air Emissions Controls for Lead Acid Battery Manufacturing
Batteries play a fundamental role in energy storage, and currently nearly 99 million lead acid batteries are manufactured each year. This past Wednesday, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a proposed rule in the Federal Register relating to air emissions controls for lead acid battery manufacturers. Highlights of the proposed rule are more stringent lead emission limits for grid casting, paste mixing, and lead reclamation operations under both the National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) (for new and existing sources) and new New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for lead acid battery facilities that begin construction, reconstruction, or modification after February 23, 2022.
Court Cites “Major Questions” Doctrine when Striking Down Biden “Social Cost of Carbon” Efforts
The “major questions” doctrine is likely to substantially affect environmental law. The “major questions” doctrine provides that for “major policy question[s] of great economic or political importance, Congress must either: (i) expressly and specifically decide the major policy question itself and delegate to the agency the authority to regulate and enforce; or (ii) expressly and specifically delegate to the agency the authority to both decide the major policy question and to regulate and enforce.” As we noted in our last post touching on the “major questions” doctrine, we expect that the “major questions” doctrine may be a focus of other cases on the docket this year including a pending case involving U.S. Environmental Protection Agency greenhouse gas regulations.
Louisiana to Receive Federal Funding to Help Address Thousands of Orphaned Oilfield Sites throughout the State
The U.S. Interior Department recently announced that it is awarding Louisiana with about $47 million to be used to plug and abandon the orphaned well sites throughout the state. This is part of phase one of many under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, which was signed by President Biden in November.
Louisiana first turned
Carbon Capture Utilization and Storage: Administration Action (and Inaction)
On February 16, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published in the Federal Register new interim guidance that is intended to facilitate the review and deployment of carbon capture, sequestration, utilization, and storage (CCUS) technologies. For those hoping for specific guidance that would accelerate the deployment of CCUS, the interim guidance is likely to disappoint. Congress recently signaled strong interest in accelerating CCUS as a national decarbonization strategy by providing billions of dollars of new investment to support the industry, but the guidance is largely silent on how the executive branch will match the urgency in ensuring on-the-ground deployment in the foreseeable future. Comments on CEQ’s guidance are due to CEQ by March 18.
European Commission Proposes New Supply Chain Due Diligence Rules for Large Companies
In-scope companies would have to publicly identify “actual and potential” adverse impacts of their operations on the environment and/or human rights.
By Paul A. Davies, Michael D. Green, and James Bee
On 23 February 2022, the European Commission (the Commission) published a proposal for a Directive on Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence (the Directive). If approved, the Directive would require large companies based in the EU (and certain large companies based outside of (but operating in) the EU) to conduct due diligence on a number of ESG-related issues throughout their supply chain, with failure to do so leading to possible fines or civil liability.
Comments Due for USDA’s Proposed Regulations Governing Standards for Birds Not Bred for Use in Research Under the Animal Welfare Act
For those who will be regulated by USDA under the Animal Welfare Act for non-exempt facilities with birds not bred for use in research the time is ripe for you to submit comments to the proposed regulation published on Feb. 22, 2022 in the Federal Register. Comments are currently due by April 25, 2022.
Modification of Italian Constitution: Environment Elevated to Protected Primary Value
On Feb. 8, 2022, the Italian Chamber of Deputies approved a constitutional law (A.C. 3156) that modifies the Italian Constitution and elevates the environment to a constitutionally protected primary value.