Permitting, Regulatory Counseling, and Compliance

Our environmental attorneys have developed cost effective solutions to tough regulatory problems, based on practical experience and a thorough knowledge of applicable law and the practices and policies of regulatory agencies. Our practice is broad, involving all substantive areas of environmental law, including:

Air quality
Water quality
Water rights
Storage tanks
Hazardous and solid waste
Site remediation and Brownfields redevelopment
Climate change
Sustainability
Chemical regulation
Chemical security
Hazardous materials transport
Community-right-to-know
PCBs
Radioactive materials, including NORM
Land use
Wetlands
Endangered species
Natural resource damages
NEPA
Historic preservation
Indoor air quality
Mold
Asbestos
OSHA

We represent a wide spectrum of clients, ranging from refineries, chemical plants, manufacturers, and oil and gas exploration and production operators, to developers, property managers, and financial institutions. We counsel clients on regulatory requirements relating to ongoing operations, as well as those associated with the construction of new facilities and modification of existing facilities. We assist clients in the scoping and performance of compliance audits, including those conducted under pertinent audit privilege/immunity statutes. We help them monitor, and provide input to, pertinent agency rulemaking and policy development. We assist clients not only with specific matters, but also in developing and applying environmental policies and management programs, including policies pertaining to sustainability and climate change.

We work closely with clients to devise innovative methods to identify environmental risks and to devise creative and cost-effective ways to manage those risks, including risks related to climate change. We help clients in structuring and negotiating transactions involving Brownfields properties and in developing Brownfields properties under applicable regulatory programs, such as the Texas Voluntary Cleanup Program, the Innocent Owner/Operator Program, Municipal Settings Designations, Above Ground and Underground Storage Tanks Programs, the Dry Cleaner Remediation Program and the Texas Risk Reduction Program.

In addition to counseling clients on regulatory matters, we represent them before regulatory agencies in negotiations and in related administrative and judicial litigation, including:

Administrative, civil and criminal enforcement actions brought by federal, state, and local governments
Citizen suits
Permit proceedings
Administrative appeals
Rule challenges
Superfund and related litigation

We know the professionals in the regulatory agencies and they know us, the types of clients we represent, and the type of representation we provide - representation that is both zealous and reflective of the highest standards of ethical conduct. Three members of our group have been practicing before state and federal environmental agencies for over 30 years. And our practice group has a unique distinction. Although we generally represent regulated industry, several years ago we represented the State of Texas, litigating and settling two related, high profile enforcement actions under the federal Clean Water Act, in federal district courts in Houston, Texas and Tulsa, Oklahoma, working with the state’s environmental agencies and with U.S. EPA and the Department of Justice.