Air Quality and Regulatory Compliance
- Advising refineries, oil and gas companies, mining and manufacturing companies, resorts, educational institutions, and other industrial and commercial operators in ongoing matters of project development, permitting, and air quality compliance and enforcement actions, including strategic resolution of notices of violations, penalty and settlement negotiations, and representation in administrative hearings for variance petitions and orders for abatement, with particular familiarity within Kern County, CA (including the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District) and South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) jurisdictions.
- Advising engine manufacturers, vehicle fleet owners, and commercial and industrial operators with CARB enforcement actions, investigations, and rule development.
- Advising a variety of industries, including financial institutions and food and beverage companies, on California’s recent greenhouse gas emissions disclosure laws and impending rulemaking.
- Counseling consumer product manufacturers and distributors in product labeling that intersects with environmental law, including California’s Prop 65 warning regulations and relevant import/export regulations.
- Advising Sterigenics, Inc. in connection with SCAQMD compliance, enforcement, and rulemaking activities governing facility operations, including guiding the client through an abatement order hearing process, responding to notices to comply, negotiating Notices of Violation, counseling through the AB2588 Health Risk Assessment process, engagement in stakeholder meetings and rulemaking, and guidance with potentially relevant state processes undertaking by the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment (OEHHA).
- Advising a Southern California cement plant in the regulatory implications of developing and employing a waste-derived engineered fuel for its cement kilns.
- Advising a medical waste and mobile shredding company regarding California’s zero-emissions (ZE) heavy-duty truck regulations (the Advanced Clean Fleet regulation), including engagement in rulemaking activities, counseling in ongoing state and national developments (including tracking and analysis of anticipated ZE truck rules in other states), and long-term strategic planning considerations given the challenges of California’s novel rules.
- Advising a Fortune 500 company on SCAQMD compliance related to its airport operations and emissions.
- Advising an architectural glass manufacturer with numerous facilities in California and throughout the country in environmental regulatory compliance, including SCAQMD permitting, as well as negotiation with CalRecycle regarding NOVs for alleged violations of California’s Rigid Plastic Packaging Container (RPPC) Program and ongoing compliance with that regulation.
- Representing a Kern County, CA refinery in air permitting and CEQA compliance associated with conversion of the facility to renewable diesel processing.
- Representing another Kern County, CA refinery in compliance and enforcement actions, including obtaining a variance from and negotiating NOV settlements with the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District.
- Obtained recent variances from SCAQMD rules with conditions favorable to various clients (a ski resort, a large public university, and an amusement park), who were also able to avoid the need to travel and appear before the SCAQMD Hearing Board.
- Advised several food manufacturers in SCAQMD compliance with rules related to ovens, boilers, and refrigeration equipment, as well as SB54 and CalRecycle’s Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) regulations that impose obligations related to single-use food packaging.
- Advised commercial warehouse operators in compliance with SCAQMD’s indirect source rule that imposes obligations on warehouse owners based on vehicles that travel to and from the warehouse (the WAIRE program).
- Advised a major cement company in the environmental review of modifications to its Title V permit and related operational activities, including permitting negotiations with the Bay Area Air Quality Management District.
- Represented a steel mill in obtaining a lengthy variance from provisions of a SCAQMD lead emissions rule, with conditions that are favorable to the client and allow for interim operational flexibility. Counseling this client through a concurrent Title V permit modification that will ultimately enable the facility to achieve compliance with the rule through an alternative operating protocol preferable to the client.
- Represented a public wastewater treatment agency in obtaining a lengthy variance from SCAQMD rules and advising the agency on Title V reporting matters.
- Advised a renewable biodiesel company regarding enforcement actions taken by the San Diego Air Pollution Control District, including an abatement order hearing, modification of the conditions of the order, the response to and negotiation of the settlement of NOVs, and ongoing compliance.
- Counseled a pharmaceutical manufacturer in air permitting and administrative proceedings, including successfully petitioning for a variance, before the Santa Barbara Air Pollution Control District.
- Advised a Northern California cement plant on compliance with rules and regulations related to naturally occurring asbestos within the Shasta County Air Pollution Control District.
- Advised a steel mill in connection with the SCAQMD’s development of a new rule governing lead emissions and participated in negotiations with the air district that ultimately resulted in adoption of a rule satisfactory to the client.
- Advised a battery manufacturer in SCAQMD matters, including permitting, NOV settlement, and ongoing compliance with recently amended rules.
Land Use and Zoning
- Counseling a marine terminal in connection with the CEQA review of a project to expand its terminal operations at the Port of Long Beach, CA.
- Advising a cement plan in the CEQA review and associated permitting of a project to develop an engineered municipal solid waste (EMSW) facility.
- Acting as national land use counsel to a renewable energy company developing dozens of projects across the United States to produce renewable natural gas from the anaerobic digestion of organic waste diverted from landfills and beneficial reuse of agricultural byproducts.
- Counseled a cement plant and limestone mine with CEQA and NEPA reviews of a significant plan to expand its quarry, along with the continued implementation of the project and ongoing negotiation of newly applicable endangered species considerations affecting the project.
- Advised the AltAir Paramount refinery in connection with a CEQA review, as it undergoes a comprehensive conversion from petroleum refining to renewable fuel refining. Obtained variances from air district rules on behalf of this refinery as it pioneered new technology in limited early phases of the conversion.
- Counseled a major cement company through development of an environmental impact report (EIR) in connection with the development of a new cement import terminal at the Port of San Diego.
- Counseled an oil and gas exploration company on Endangered Species Act issues for a proposed development project within Bureau of Land Management and county jurisdictions.
- Advised a battery manufacturer regarding land use entitlements for its substantial construction project on a small urban footprint.
- Advised an international mining company in connection with development and expansion of an Arizona mine.
- Counseled a major cement company during environmental review for the expansion and modernization of its cement import terminal at the Port of Long Beach and defended a challenge to the project approvals by opponents who appealed the decision to the Long Beach City Council. Negotiated a lease with the Port of Long Beach. We continue to advise the client on matters related to project implementation and ongoing regulatory compliance.
- Counseled a Southern California refinery in its operations pursuant to applicable air quality rules and environmental review.
- Prevailed in appellate court on a key issue of first impression that considered whether and how California’s cap-and-trade program applied in assessing project GHG emissions impacts under CEQA (which was cited as authority in the 2018 update to the CEQA Guidelines) and that favorably clarified CEQA baseline precedent.
- Counseled a major oil and gas exploration and production company through the development of a comprehensive environmental impact report addressing, among other things, review of the company’s countywide activities over a 20-year planning horizon. This effort required regular meetings with multiple stakeholders over more than two years, as well as cross-collaboration with technical consultants, regulators, and planning staff.
- Counseled a Kern County, CA refinery throughout the environmental review process of a controversial project to allow the refinery to receive crude oil by rail and secured project approvals, including certification of an environmental impact report.
- Advised a Kern County, CA mining company on a potential endangered species listing that could affect mine operations and counseled on general land use matters relating to development of the mine, including permitting for new project infrastructure and ongoing compliance with existing conditions and mitigation measures.
- Represented a developer in securing entitlements for the construction and development of a 225,000 square-foot retail center and defended the project in two CEQA challenges. The project is located between the international border and a municipal airport and required a general plan amendment, zone change for portions of the site that were zoned open space, tentative subdivision tract map, certification of an environmental impact report, approval of a comprehensive sign program and related variances, and numerous other project entitlements.
- Defended private entity in an action alleging violations of CEQA and local zoning ordinances governing wine country developments. The respondents’ motion for summary judgment was granted, and the petitioner did not recover attorneys’ fees.