The new ASTM standard (ASTM E1527-21) for Phase I Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs) was published in November 2021. On December 15, 2022, USEPA published a direct final rule approving the new standard for conducting the all appropriate inquiry (AAI) component for potential liability protections under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). With
The White House’s FY 2023 budget announcement allocated $1.4 billion to advancing environmental justice (EJ), greatly enhancing the agency’s ability to award new competitive grants to reduce the health impacts of pollution in communities with EJ concerns. Companies are already experiencing increased community engagement in several locations throughout the United States, and although awareness of EJ
On January 27, 2021, the Biden Administration put forth Executive Order 14008, creating the White House Environmental Justice Interagency Council. Environmental Justice (EJ), as defined by the EPA, is “the fair treatment and meaningful involvement of all people regardless of race, color, national origin, or income with respect to the development, implementation and enforcement of
Over the summer, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a national news release regarding a troubling rise in worker deaths related to trenching and excavation work. In the first half of the current year, 22 workers have succumbed to injuries sustained while performing work inside trenches and excavations. As a result of these
On August 26, 2022, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a proposal to designate two per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) — perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS), and their salts and structural isomers, as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), also known as Superfund. This proposal follows
A growing number of stakeholders and consumers are requesting companies’ environmental impact data. Industries are seeing a shift to the “conscious consumer” not only caring about the quality of their product, but also caring about the environmental and social practices of the company. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently passed a climate disclosure
The fifth Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule (UCMR 5) was published by the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) December 27, 2021. The Rule requires public drinking water systems to test for all 29 per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) for which analytical methods exist, where those systems supply 3,300 or more customers; systems serving less than 3,300