Environmental Law

Criminal Probe Launched in Deadly Explosion at Conn. Power Plant

A criminal investigation has been opened into a gas explosion that killed five and injured a dozen workers at a power plant in Connecticut on Sunday, reports the Associated Press. “If everything went right, we wouldn’t all be here right now,” said Middletown Mayor Sebastian Guiliano, apparently at a press…

Feb 9, 2010 2:37 AM CST

Say You’re Sorry—in a Newspaper Ad, Prosecutors Demand in Enviro Cases

Caught storing hazardous waste illegally, a Massachusetts company had to pay $100,000 in fines. But perhaps even more painful was the public statement it had to make—“It would have been a lot cheaper to obey the law!’’—in two trade publication ads. Such public apologies have been pursued by federal prosecutors…

Feb 1, 2010 9:49 PM CST

Chief Justice Practices Special Master Diplomacy in Water Intervenor Dissent

In a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court has allowed a utility and a water supply company to intervene in a dispute over water rights between two states. Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. partially dissented in an opinion that gives a shout out to special masters, despite disagreeing with…

Jan 20, 2010 5:02 PM CST

Supreme Court Refuses to Order Lock Closure in Asian Carp Case

The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to issue an injunction that would have closed shipping locks in an effort to prevent Asian carp from invading the Great Lakes. The court refused to issue an injunction that would have closed the locks and required other emergency measures to battle the fish,…

Jan 19, 2010 3:38 PM CST

EPA Proposes Stricter Smog Standards

The Environmental Protection Agency has proposed stricter smog standards that would likely put hundreds of additional counties in violation of the regulations. Scientists had recommended the proposed new standards before President Obama took office, the Associated Press reports. Obama’s predecessor, President George W. Bush, had refused to implement the stricter…

Jan 7, 2010 5:18 PM CST

Mich. AG Likens Carp to ‘Nuclear Bombs,’ Asks High Court to Stop Lake Entry

Michigan Attorney General Mike Cox has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to force Illinois to close shipping locks to prevent Asian carp from invading the Great Lakes. In an effort to resolve the case quickly, Cox is asking the high court to reopen three separate 1929 complaints by Wisconsin, Michigan…

Dec 22, 2009 2:37 PM CST

Chevron Sues Plaintiffs Lawyer for $4M, Alleges Malicious Prosecution

After making headlines several months ago by posting a video on YouTube to bolster its defense of an Ecuador-based environmental mass tort case, Chevron is again trying an unusual litigation tactic in a closely related case. The company has sued a plaintiffs attorney for $4 million in federal court in…

Nov 17, 2009 10:51 PM CST

OSHA Hits BP Refinery With Monster $87.4M Fine; 15 Died in 2005 Explosion

The U.S. Department of Labor is seeking to impose a record-breaking $87.4 million in penalties on oil giant BP for safety violations at a refinery it operates in Texas. Of that amount, $56.7 million relates to a 2005 explosion at the Texas City refinery that killed 15 people and injured…

Oct 30, 2009 6:55 PM CDT

Man Who Gave Judge Video to Chevron in $27B Ecuador Case a Convicted Felon

One of two men who made a secret videotape seemingly showing an Ecuador judge in a $27 billion environmental case discussing his upcoming ruling is a convicted drug felon, the New York Times reports. Wayne Hansen, an American, was convicted of conspiring to traffic 275,000 pounds of marijuana from Colombia…

Oct 29, 2009 11:55 PM CDT

Nonprofit Environmental Firm Axes 4

Addressing an expected 20 percent budget cut in 2010, the Western Environmental Law Center is laying off two senior lawyers and two staff members. Based in Eugene, Ore., the nonprofit firm has nine lawyers in offices in four states, reports the Eugene Register-Guard. The two lawyers being let go, Dave…

Oct 26, 2009 10:55 PM CDT

5th Circuit Allows Katrina Victims to Sue Over Global Warming

A federal appeals court is allowing a suit by victims of Hurricane Katrina who claim oil, coal and chemical companies contributed to global warming, increasing the ferocity of the hurricane that damaged their property. The New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that victims of Hurricane Katrina have…

Oct 21, 2009 4:28 PM CDT

Jury Says Exxon Owes $105M in NYC Well Case, But Judge Nixes Punitives

A federal jury in New York today found Exxon Mobil Corp. liable for polluting well water in the New York City’s borough of Queens with a gasoline additive and ordered the company to pay almost $105 million in cleanup costs. However, the verdict was also something of a win for…

Oct 19, 2009 5:50 PM CDT

A Time to Plant

Project urges lawyers to put trees back in the ground

Oct 2, 2009 12:40 AM CDT

EPA Seeks New Law, More Power to Regulate Toxic Chemicals

As Congress prepares to update a 33-year-old law that governs the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s regulation of toxic chemicals, the executive branch is seeking more authority over what officials describe as a risky situation. “The American people are looking to government for assurance that chemicals have been assessed using the…

Sep 30, 2009 7:10 PM CDT

Wash. Lawyer Sues Suburb Over Planned Salmon Hatchery at His Own Home

Bill Weinstein says officials in the Seattle suburb in which he is building a waterfront home agreed he could have a salmon hatchery there, as part of a settlement of earlier construction litigation. But Bellevue officials say Weinstein is wrong. Now they are in court again, as the Washington state…

Sep 24, 2009 5:20 PM CDT