Law360's Brownfields Policy Tracker
State and federal governments have been proposing a slew of brownfields-related policies and laws in recent years as industry pressure and a historic funding allocation gives renewed focus to the work of remediating contaminated land.
Law360's brownfield policy tracker provides an overview of how those pending policies are advancing across the country.
| Bill Title | Jurisdiction | Description | Intro Date | Last Action | Category | Status |
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July 2nd, 2024, 4:07PM
Data Analysis Shows Swift Influx In EPA Brownfield GrantsEmma Kennedy
A Law360 Real Estate Authority analysis of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's brownfield grant awards since the program's inception shows a steep increase in funding, particularly in funding of cleanups, since the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law was passed in 2021.Â
June 26th, 2024, 6:44PM
EPA Funding Spurs Remediation Push On Alaska Native LandGrace Dixon
Thousands of sites contaminated by WWII, oil and gas exploration and mining were transferred to Alaska Native ownership in a 1971 deal settling land claims in the state. Now, an influx of funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and other sources has seriously boosted cleanup work.
June 18th, 2024, 12:50PM
How Milwaukee Tops US In EPA Brownfield WinningsNate Beck
The city of Milwaukee's redevelopment agency has won nearly twice as many federal grants to clean up brownfield properties as any other government entity in the United States. Dave Misky, assistant director at the Milwaukee Redevelopment Authority, talks to Law360 Real Estate Authority about the agency's success.
June 14th, 2024, 7:40PM
Feds, Tribes Say Mill Owners Liable For 150 Years Of PollutionCrystal Owens
The federal government, the state of Washington and a slew of tribes are suing the owners of a shuttered sawmill and a property group that now oversee the sawmill area's development, alleging that for more than a century, hazardous substances from the operation released into Port Gamble Bay and have harmed its natural resources.
June 14th, 2024, 3:50PM
Data Center Builder Starts $10B Project In IllinoisIsaac Monterose
Sears' former headquarters in Hoffman Estates, Illinois, is being turned into a $10-billion campus that will have five hyperscale data centers, Compass Datacenters announced.
June 12th, 2024, 4:23PM
Historic Brownfields Funding Is Fueling Cleanup Catch-UpEmma Kennedy
Under the time crunch of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, funding for brownfield cleanups has increased by more than 700% in the last three years as cities and nonprofits vie to tackle their most complex sites.
June 6th, 2024, 3:46PM
Colorado Extends Contaminated Land Cleanup Tax CreditJaqueline McCool
Colorado will extend its environmental remediation of contaminated land income tax credit for five years under a bill signed by Democratic Gov. Jared Polis.
June 5th, 2024, 2:19PM
$1.5B Funding Surge Highlights EPA's Brownfields EvolutionEmma Kennedy
Building on what's already a much-touted bipartisan success story, the EPA has ironed out many of the wrinkles in its brownfields program and is now equipped with a surge of funding. In the first of a four-part series, Law360 Real Estate Authority analyzes the trends and outlooks from the agency's brownfield grant data.
May 20th, 2024, 6:26PM
EPA Touts Brownfield Grants In Visit To Polluted Philly SiteNate Beck
Biden administration officials visited a riverfront site in Philadelphia where the city is using federal support to clean up contamination and add amenities, as they promoted $3 million in U.S. Environmental Protection Agency support to four New Jersey communities.
May 14th, 2024, 9:20PM
Electronic Parts Co. Pays $2.4M For NY Superfund CleanupIsaac Monterose
Electronic components manufacturer Kyocera AVX Components Corp. reached a finalized settlement agreement with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in which the company will pay an estimated $2.4 million to clean up its former location at Olean, New York, in the 1.5 square-mile Olean Well Field Superfund Site, the EPA announced Tuesday.
May 9th, 2024, 4:19PM
GE Dropped From Louisiana Factory Contamination SuitGrace Dixon
A Louisiana federal judge has dropped General Electric from property owners' suit alleging widespread contamination caused by a now-closed manufacturing facility, finding an earlier merger by a subsidiary did not make the company a liable successor.
May 7th, 2024, 7:36PM
New Missouri Law Forces Landfills Further From CitiesIsaac Monterose
A new Missouri law will increase the radius for approvals needed from nearby municipalities for several types of landfills to one mile from half a mile, in what the governor called a "win for property rights."
May 2nd, 2024, 3:37PM
Atty In $119M Bad Faith Win Seeks Justice In And Out Of CourtElizabeth Daley
Policyholder attorney Benjamin W. Massarsky of Miller Friel is part of a team that won over $119 million from insurers in a case thought to have garnered among the largest bad faith wins in the past 30 years. He also works pro bono to fight for accommodations for students with disabilities. Here, he shares where his passions for justice converge.
May 1st, 2024, 12:24PM
What Attys Are Saying About The PFAS CERCLA DesignationEmma Kennedy
In the days since the Environmental Protection Agency classified two "forever chemicals" as hazardous, real estate and environmental attorneys have been analyzing how the move applies to their work.
April 26th, 2024, 4:43PM
Colo. House OKs Land Cleanup Tax Credit ExtensionSanjay Talwani
Colorado would extend its income tax credit for certain environmental remediation of contaminated property for five years under legislation approved Friday by the House of Representatives.
April 19th, 2024, 8:43PM
Attys Wary Of 'Zero Tolerance' Approach In New PFAS RuleEmma Kennedy
With Friday's finalization of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's rule designating two "forever chemicals" as hazardous, the stakes just got higher for real property due diligence work.
April 18th, 2024, 3:57PM
Maui County Sued Over Wildfire Landfill Debris StorageMadeline Lyskawa
Maui County has been slapped with a lawsuit in Hawaii federal court alleging it relied on a deficient, 28-year-old environmental impact statement when taking over a nearly 20-acre parcel of land to house debris from last year's massive wildfires, in violation of the Hawaii Environmental Protection Act.
April 16th, 2024, 7:56PM
Feds, PPG Reach $22.8M Deal To Clean Up NJ Superfund SiteMadeline Lyskawa
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency unveiled a settlement with PPG Industries Inc. on Tuesday under which the company has agreed to cough up more than $22.8 million to cover the estimated future cleanup costs and maintenance at the Riverside Industrial Park Superfund Site in Newark, New Jersey.
April 9th, 2024, 5:08PM
EPA Outlines New Ways To Destroy, Dispose Of PFASIsaac Monterose
Waste managers, government regulators and the public should use methods such as underground injection to destroy or dispose of perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances and PFAS materials, guidance from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says.
April 8th, 2024, 10:34PM
Idaho Land Deal Would Sustain Legacy Of Pollution, Tribes SayCrystal Owens
A group of Idaho tribes is urging the Ninth Circuit to uphold a lower court ruling granting a partial win in their challenge to a land transfer for a fertilizer plant's expansion, arguing that if allowed to go forward, it would continue a decadeslong legacy of contamination for their communities.