Contaminated Sites and Natural Resource Damages
Clients call on Sidley's Environmental group to work on complex contaminated site issues due to the depth of our experience and the breadth of our practice. Our lawyers have worked on contaminated sites issues for more than 25 years in both private practice and as government attorneys. We have represented clients at hundreds of sites, including many significant and complex contaminated sediment, mining and nuclear sites.
Experience at Contaminated Sites
Our experience spans every aspect of contaminated sites practice, including:
- Representing clients and negotiating with government agencies regarding all aspects of site cleanup, including site listing, remedial investigations, risk assessment, feasibility studies, remedy selection, remedy implementation, government cost recovery and consent decree interpretation and enforcement.
- Litigation, including defense and prosecution of cost recovery and contribution actions in federal and state courts, as well as private litigation regarding liability for response costs (e.g., buyer-seller litigation).
- National and international legislative and regulatory advocacy on contaminated site liability, remedial and natural resource damage issues.
- Representing clients in court challenges to remedial and natural resource damage rules issued by federal and state agencies.
- Defending against claims for natural resource damages.
- Participation in and development of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, including arbitration and mediation among private parties and with government agencies.
- Advising clients on alternative funding mechanisms, including innovative environmental insurance products.
- Representing clients involved in Brownfields development.
Through our extensive experience, our lawyers are familiar with the state-of-the-art science of hazardous substances, including chlorinated solvents, PCBs, mercury, benzene, asbestos, dioxins, formaldehyde and radioactive materials. This experience is invaluable in reaching realistic and workable solutions to complex problems. We have worked with virtually all of the major consulting firms in relevant fields, including geo-technical, risk assessment, fate and transport modeling and economic. Our substantial working history with individuals at these firms ensures that our clients promptly receive the best technical advice available.
Natural Resource Damages Natural resource damages play a role in many contaminated sites, and recent initiatives in several states have further highlighted the importance of these claims. We have experience in all of the issues necessary to respond to natural resource damages claims:
- Representing clients at all stages of the natural resource damages assessment process.
- Challenging questionable methodologies that trustees may use in assessments.
- Working cooperatively with trustees to develop natural resource restoration plans and projects to compensate for alleged damages cost-effectively.
- Litigating economic valuation issues in a variety of contexts.
Sediments and Groundwater We are representing clients at some of the largest contaminated river sites in the country, and we have advised clients on a number of critical strategic issues related to potential liabilities at contaminated river, sediment and groundwater sites, including:
- Identifying contaminants of concern and their likely sources, and identifying the geographic area of concern, typically evaluating both downstream and upstream areas.
- Modeling how human activities such as water withdrawal and anticipated natural events will affect exposure to the contaminants in the future.
- Understanding the toxicity to humans and wildlife of the contaminants of concern.
- Evaluating and creating peer-reviewed toxicity assessments, and challenging, administratively and judicially, deficient toxicity assumptions.
- Evaluating human exposure to and the risks presented by contaminants in sediments and groundwater.
- Evaluating the exposure of biota to the contaminants.
- Determining the acceptable/non-acceptable risk levels for human health and ecological exposures.
- Participating in site-specific scientific peer reviews of risk assessments and modeling studies.
- Developing community relation programs to minimize the risk of tort claims and public pressure for the regulatory agencies to select an excessive remedy.