by Kelly A. Daly In response to the Declaration of a National Emergency relating to the coronavirus outbreak (COVID-19), the Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Office of Pipeline Safety issued an important notice to operators of gas pipelines and storage facilities, hazardous liquids pipelines and liquified natural gas facilities. The […]
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by Patrick J. Paul As COVID-19 continues its spread across the U.S. and globe and governments react with historic aid measures, social distance and stay at home orders, it seems opportunities for accelerated drone deployment to help with the COVID-19 spread in the U.S. may be missed. Drones can reduce human involvement in the supply […]
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by Patrick J. Paul Researchers from Arizona State University are evaluating Tempe wastewater for traces of COVID-19, which could serve as an early warning system of the virus’s spread in communities. Although believed to be among the first cities in America to study the possible connection between community spread of the coronavirus through wastewater systems, the […]
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by Patrick J. Paul, Chris Colyer, and Michael C. Ford On March 31, 2020, the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) issued a Memorandum of Compliance and Enforcement Implementation During COVID-19. This memo of compliance is consistent with the March 26, 2020 United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Memorandum entitled COVID-19 Implications for EPA’s Enforcement […]
by Mitchell J. Klein Somewhat lost amidst all the (well deserved) COVID-19 pandemic news that comes out daily, is a decision by the Justice Department regarding the settlement of environmental enforcement cases that will likely have profound impacts. The current administration has decided to ban the use of Supplemental Environmental Projects (“SEPs”) as a tool […]
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by Kelly A. Daly Around the world, drone enthusiasts are mobilizing to demonstrate the numerous benefits that Unmanned Aircraft Systems (“UAS” or “drones”) technology can offer during this COVID-19 pandemic. Equipped with beacons, spotlights, visual and thermal cameras, specialized sensors and computer vision systems, so-called “pandemic drones” can remotely detect sneezing and coughing and can […]
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by Kelly Daly The Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced that it is prepared to grant temporary exemptions from work-hour controls when the COVID-19 virus adversely impacts staffing levels at nuclear plants such that the applicant can no longer meet the work-hour control requirements provided that the applicant can demonstrate that fatigue-management controls are in place. Specifically, […]
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By Michael C. Ford EPA announced on March 26, 2020 a temporary enforcement policy regarding EPA enforcement of environmental legal obligations. In general, EPA does not expect to seek penalties for violations of routine compliance monitoring, integrity testing, sampling, laboratory analysis, training, and reporting or certification obligations in situations where EPA agrees that COVID-19 was […]
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by Patrick J. Paul As the Coronavirus pandemic continues its spread across the globe, the case for drone delivery is rapidly gaining international attention and consequently may have regulatory approval fast-tracked. In China, drone delivery systems previously utilized for residential mail delivery were re-purposed in the medical supplies field to assist hospitals’ response to the […]
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by Patrick J. Paul The COVID-19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc on a host of industries worldwide and the renewable energy market is not exempt. In the U.S., the renewable market is likely to be impacted by supply chain and construction disruptions caused by the coronavirus spread. These delays may further negatively impact existing power […]
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