Source: Ottawa Business Journal, September 23, 2013 By: Jeysa Martinez, Brazeau Seller LLP Innocent and blameless property owners may be exposed to significant environmental liability risk. When assessing environmental liability one might think that, if a land owner did not create nor contribute to an environmental spill or contamination, fault and fairness would be taken […]

Source: http://www.lexology.com, September 18, 2013 By: Amy B. Briggs, David B. Killalea , Stephen T. Raptis, Robert H. Shulman and Susan P. White, Manatt Phelps & Phillips LLP A letter sent by the EPA in 2001 pursuant to CERCLA warning Land O’Lakes that it could be a potentially responsible party (“PRP”) for cleanup of an […]

Source: http://www.courierpostonline.com, September 17, 2013 By: Jim Walsh A legal agreement is providing $1 million toward cleanup costs for a polluted landfill in Voorhees. Under terms of a consent order, General Electric Co. will pay $255,000 to a state agency for costs incurred at the former Buzby Brothers Landfill. In addition, $245,000 will come from […]

Source: http://www.pottsmerc.com, September 18, 2013 By: Evan Brandt The state is stepping in to make sure a half-million-dollar environmental cleanup at a closed plating facility in the borough gets completed after the bankrupt owner stopped work. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection announced Wednesday it would take over the removal of hazardous materials left over […]

Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com, September 19, 2013 By: Alexander Smith A fire engulfed a chemical plant in Oklahoma early Thursday, heating pressurized containers and causing several explosions, authorities said. The Danlin plant in Thomas, Okla., caught fire at 10 p.m. local time (11 p.m. ET) Wednesday, according to fire officials. Contrary to previous statements by the Thomas […]

Source: http://www.wileyrein.com, September 18, 2013 The United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, applying New Jersey law, has held that a policy provision requiring written consent of the insurer in order for claims expenses incurred by the policyholder to be reimbursed is unambiguous. Paulus Sokolowski & Sartor, LLC v. Cont’l Cas. Co., […]

Source: http://www.lexology.com, September 4, 2013 By: Stanley A. Martin, Duane Morris LLP The contractor’s excavator digging the foundation for a new building undermines the abutting building, which collapses, and a worker is injured. In the subsequent lawsuits, one by the abutter and one by the injured worker, the project owner tenders the defense to its […]

Source: The Times-Tribune (Scranton, PA), September 13, 2013 Posted on: http://envfpn.advisen.com A federal judge on Thursday granted preliminary approval to a $7.5 million settlement of a class-action lawsuit filed against natural gas producer Chesapeake Appalachia by several thousand Pennsylvania leaseholders. U.S. District Judge Malachy Mannion said he reviewed the terms of the proposed settlement and […]

Source: Dow Jones News Service, September 13, 2013 Posted on: http://envfpn.advisen.com (FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 9/14/13) RIO DE JANEIRO — U.S. energy firm Chevron Corp. on Friday agreed to pay about $42 million to settle lawsuits related to an offshore oil spill in late 2011, much less than the $20 billion in damages that […]

Source: http://energyindepth.org, September 16, 2013 By: Steve Everley For years, critics of hydraulic fracturing have alleged that “methane leaks” from development are not only astronomically high, but also make natural gas from shale a climate “disaster” and “gang-plank.” But a new, highly anticipated report from the University of Texas and the Environmental Defense Fund might […]

Source: The Philadelphia Inquirer, September 12, 2013 Posted on: http://fpn.advisen.com<\span> Pennsylvania Attorney General Kathleen Kane’s decision to prosecute a major Marcellus Shale natural-gas driller for a 2010 wastewater spill has sent shock waves through the industry. But environmentalists Wednesday hailed the prosecution of the Exxon Mobil Corp. subsidiary as a departure from the soft treatment […]

Source: http://www.lexology.com, September 5, 2013 By: Scott J. Bent, Baker & Hostetler LLP Oil and gas drillers in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale formation may soon find themselves subject to more stringent environmental protection standards under regulations proposed by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (“the Department”). The Department announced on August 27, 2013 that the proposed […]