environmental-law - SKILL.md Agent Skill

name: environmental-law description: Environmental law skill for environmental regulations and compliance. Use when the user needs assistance with EPA compliance, environmental permits, contamination, CERCLA, Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act, NEPA, or ESG matters. Triggers on keywords like "environmental", "EPA", "pollution", "contamination", "hazardous waste", "CERCLA", "Superfund", "Clean Air", "Clean Water", "NEPA", "remediation", "permit", "ESG".

Environmental Law

This skill provides expert guidance for environmental regulatory compliance, transactions, and litigation.

Core Capabilities

1. Environmental Compliance

Permitting
Regulatory compliance
Reporting requirements
Audit protocols

2. Contaminated Properties

Site assessment
Remediation
Liability allocation
Brownfields redevelopment

3. Transactional Due Diligence

Environmental assessments
Liability allocation
Representations and warranties
Indemnification

4. Environmental Litigation

Enforcement defense
Cost recovery
Citizen suits
Toxic torts

Major Environmental Statutes

Federal Environmental Laws

Statute	Agency	Focus
CERCLA (Superfund)	EPA	Hazardous substance cleanup
RCRA	EPA	Hazardous waste management
Clean Air Act	EPA	Air quality standards
Clean Water Act	EPA	Water pollution control
NEPA	Various	Environmental review
TSCA	EPA	Chemical substances
EPCRA	EPA	Emergency planning, reporting
SDWA	EPA	Drinking water
ESA	FWS/NMFS	Endangered species
FIFRA	EPA	Pesticides

CERCLA (Superfund)

Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs)

Current owners/operators of facility
Past owners/operators at time of disposal
Arrangers (generators who arranged for disposal)
Transporters who selected the site

Liability Framework

Strict liability: No fault required
Joint and several: One party can be liable for all
Retroactive: Applies to past disposal

Defenses and Exemptions

Defense	Requirements
Innocent landowner	No knowledge, appropriate inquiry
Bona fide prospective purchaser	Post-disposal acquisition, due diligence
Contiguous property owner	Contamination from neighboring property
Third-party defense	No contractual relationship, due care
Security interest	Holding security, not participating
Act of God	Unforeseeable natural disaster
Act of war	War-related cause

Response Actions

Removal: Short-term, emergency cleanup Remedial: Long-term, permanent remedy

CERCLA Liability Allocation

Orphan shares: Cost of insolvent/defunct parties
Contribution: §113(f) action among PRPs
Cost recovery: §107(a) action against PRPs
Private party actions: Recovery of response costs

RCRA (Hazardous Waste)

Cradle-to-Grave Regulation

Generation → Transportation → Treatment/Storage/Disposal

Hazardous Waste Characteristics

Characteristic	Code	Test
Ignitability	D001	Flash point < 140°F
Corrosivity	D002	pH ≤ 2 or ≥ 12.5
Reactivity	D003	Unstable, explosive
Toxicity	D004-D043	TCLP test

Listed Wastes

F List: Non-specific source
K List: Source-specific
P List: Acute hazardous (commercial chemicals)
U List: Toxic (commercial chemicals)

Generator Categories

Category	Generation Rate	Requirements
Large Quantity	> 1,000 kg/month	Full RCRA compliance
Small Quantity	100-1,000 kg/month	Modified requirements
Very Small Quantity	< 100 kg/month	Reduced requirements

TSD Facility Requirements

Permit (Part A and Part B)
Financial assurance
Groundwater monitoring
Closure/post-closure care
Contingency planning
Personnel training

Clean Air Act

National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS)

Pollutant	Criteria
Ozone	Ground-level smog
Particulate Matter (PM2.5, PM10)	Particle pollution
Carbon Monoxide	Combustion emissions
Sulfur Dioxide	Fossil fuel burning
Nitrogen Dioxide	Vehicle/power plant emissions
Lead	Industrial emissions

Permitting Programs

Program	Applicability	Key Features
Title V	Major sources	Operating permits, annual fees
PSD	New major sources in attainment areas	BACT, ambient analysis
NSR	New/modified major sources in non-attainment	LAER, offsets
Minor NSR	Minor sources	State-specific

Mobile Source Standards

Tier 3 vehicle standards
Heavy-duty vehicle standards
Renewable fuel standards
Fuel quality standards

Clean Water Act

NPDES Permits

Point Source Discharges to waters of the US require permit

Permit Requirements:

Technology-based limits (BAT, BCT, BPT)
Water quality-based limits
Monitoring and reporting
Best management practices

Categories of Dischargers

Category	Requirements
Direct industrial	Individual NPDES permit
Indirect industrial	Pretreatment, categorical standards
Municipal	POTW permit, pretreatment program
Stormwater	General or individual permit

Stormwater Permits

Coverage Required:

Construction (> 1 acre disturbance)
Industrial facilities (SIC codes)
Municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s)

Requirements:

SWPPP (Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan)
BMPs (Best Management Practices)
Monitoring
Inspections

Wetlands (Section 404)

Jurisdictional Wetlands:

Waters of the US
Adjacent wetlands
Other waters meeting connectivity test (Sackett)

Permit Types:

Individual permits (complex projects)
General permits (routine activities)
Nationwide permits (specific categories)

NEPA

NEPA Review Process

Proposed Federal Action →
Categorical Exclusion? (No significant impact) →
Environmental Assessment (EA) →
FONSI (Finding of No Significant Impact)? →
Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) →
Record of Decision (ROD)

EIS Requirements

Purpose and need
Alternatives analysis (including no action)
Affected environment
Environmental consequences
Mitigation measures
Public comment and response

Triggers for NEPA

Federal agency action
Federal funding
Federal permits
Federal property

Environmental Due Diligence

Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (ASTM E1527-21)

Purpose: Identify recognized environmental conditions (RECs)

Components:

Records review
Site reconnaissance
Interviews
Report

Findings Categories:

REC: Recognized Environmental Condition
CREC: Controlled REC (addressed but controls required)
HREC: Historical REC (no longer significant)
De minimis: Not significant

Phase II Assessment

Purpose: Confirm or rule out RECs through sampling

May Include:

Soil sampling
Groundwater sampling
Soil gas analysis
Building materials testing

Transaction Considerations

Issue	Approach
Known contamination	Remediation escrow, indemnity
Unknown contamination	Environmental insurance
Regulatory compliance	Permit transfer, compliance audit
Historical operations	Records review, Phase I

ESG and Climate

ESG Reporting Frameworks

Framework	Focus
SEC Climate Rules	Public company disclosure
TCFD	Climate-related financial risks
GRI	Comprehensive sustainability
SASB	Industry-specific metrics
CDP	Carbon disclosure

Climate Risk Categories

Physical risks: Extreme weather, sea level rise
Transition risks: Policy, technology, market shifts
Regulatory risks: Emissions standards, carbon pricing

Emissions Categories

Scope	Description
Scope 1	Direct emissions from owned sources
Scope 2	Indirect from purchased energy
Scope 3	Value chain emissions

Integration with Other Skills

real-estate: Environmental issues in transactions
corporate-ma: Environmental due diligence
litigation: Environmental enforcement defense
compliance-tracking: Permit and reporting compliance
regulatory-compliance: Multi-media compliance

Reference Files

For detailed guidance:

references/cercla-liability.md - Superfund liability analysis
references/permitting-guide.md - Environmental permit requirements
references/due-diligence.md - Phase I/II ESA procedures