Environmental Law

Gallop, Johnson & Neuman’s environmental attorneys are actively involved in a broad spectrum of environmental legal and administrative issues dealing with air, water, land and solid waste management. Whether it is assisting other practice areas of the firm in developing diligence strategies, or in facilitating the performance of the due diligence, we have the experience to pull numerous disciplines together in the time frame available, and communicate the results in a user friendly format.  The following are representative of issues handled by our environmental practice group:

• Environmental considerations in connection with business and real estate transactions, including due diligence in mergers and acquisitions, assessment, allocation and valuation of environmental risks
• CERCLA (“Superfund”) litigation and insurance related claims
• Treatment, storage and disposal of hazardous waste under local, state and federal hazardous waste management laws and regulations, including RCRA TSD facility permitting and financial assurance for closure options to meet the client’s needs
• Underground storage tank (“UST”) management, including removal projects, operation requirements under state and local regulations and claims for reimbursement filed with state UST insurance funds
• Extensive experience with solid waste landfill permitting and operation issues including zoning, construction, monitoring, financial assurance and closure/post-closure requirements under local, state and federal rules and regulations
• Assistance to clients in regard to international environmental, health and safety issues
• Emergency Planning and Community Right-To-Know (EPCRA) related issues
• Clean Water Act matters including NPDES permits, general and industry special storm water permits, wetlands issues and negotiation of industrial discharge permits
• Clean Air Act matters including negotiation of Title V air permits, construction and operation permits, banking of air emissions, and industrial specific air pollution control technologies; variance applications; issues relating to asbestos involved in renovation and demolition work under the National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP)
• Defense of complex "multi-media" enforcement actions under a variety of environmental statutes
• Brownfields initiatives at the local and state levels, including Missouri, Illinois and California’s controversial Polanco Redevelopment Act
• International Environmental Compliance involving movement of high-tech parts containing hazardous materials (including Basel Convention disposal issues) as well as the emerging framework for biotech crops under the Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety (under the Convention of Biological Diversity)
• Defense of toxic tort actions including asbestos and mold related claims

In addition, Gallop, Johnson & Neuman has a practice area dedicated to government relations and the environmental practice area assists this practice group on environmental issues involved in legislative, rule making, permitting and licensing proceedings, as well as consulting with our Toxic Tort Practice Area on environmental litigation. We also assist with required environmental disclosures under the securities laws, state property transfer law requirements, and with parent corporation and successor liability theories and the effect on risk allocation.  Our environmental practice area utilizes state of the art information systems to assist in the coordination of our firm’s practice areas with the goal of offering the client creative legal solutions to complex environmental legal issues.