Bradley’s environmental attorneys work with energy clients across the country in regard to regulations of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state equivalents that reflect those rulings, particularly in the Southeast, which includes the Alabama Department of Environmental Management and Tennessee Department of Environmental Compliance. We have worked with regulators for years, sometimes on opposite sides of the table in negotiating consent orders, and sometimes on the same side by working collaboratively to bring new industries to Southeastern communities. In this area, we handle permitting, compliance issues, and related administrative proceedings regarding notices of violation.
Among the environmental regulations that impact our clients most directly are those related to the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, and Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) involving Superfund matters. Given the strict and retroactive nature of CERCLA liability, we educate clients about the unique challenges that defenses pose to work through the process in the most cost-efficient way possible. For matters involving a large Superfund site with numerous different entities, we work toward arrangements among the various contributors with regard to long-term fiscal responsibility. We are prepared for issues that may resurface decades later, requiring further advice and responses on subsequent negotiations.
Our work also includes interfacing with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which govern wetlands and navigable waterways for construction projects, and handling matters related to the Endangered Species Act. Our development work extends to state oil and gas regulatory bodies, such as the Railroad Commission in Texas and the Surface Mining Commission in Alabama. If an environmental issue turns into a criminal prosecution, our experience extends to criminal cases that can arise in conjunction with compliance.
