Last week the U.S. Department of Justice’s Department of Environmental and Natural Resources issued a memo withdrawing several documents that were issued from 2018 through January 2021.  The nine reversed documents all had limited the agency’s ability to enforce environmental regulations. One of the changes brings back a popular DOJ program called Supplemental Environmental Projects (SEP), wherein a company could choose to carry out EPA-approved projects in exchange for smaller fines. Environmental justice groups laud these programs because it puts the money directly into improving the environment where the pollution is occurring instead of in government coffers.  Affected businesses also prefer SEPs as the improvements help them avoid future problems. The nine documents that were withdrawn, effective immediately, include:

1. 1. 1. “Enforcement Principles and Priorities,” January 14, 2021;
      2. “Additional Recommendations on Enforcement Discretion,” January 14, 2021;
      3. “Guidance Regarding Newly Promulgated Rule Restricting Third-Party Payments, 28 C.F.R. § 50.28,” January 13, 2021;
      4. “Equitable Mitigation in Civil Environmental Enforcement Cases,” January 12, 2021; - 2 –
      5. “Civil Enforcement Discretion in Certain Clean Water Act Matters Involving Prior State Proceedings,” July 27, 2020;
      6. “Supplemental Environmental Projects (“SEPs”) in Civil Settlements with Private Defendants,” March 12, 2020;
      7. “Using Supplemental Environmental Projects (“SEPs”) in Settlements with State and Local Governments,” August 21, 2019;
      8. “Enforcement Principles and Priorities,” March 12, 2018; and
      9. “Settlement Payments to Third Parties in ENRD Cases,” January 9, 2018.

Cornerstone’s experts are staying up-to-date on the laws, rules, and guidance that affect our client’s environmental, health and safety compliance needs.  Contact us at info@corner-enviro.com or on our website for assistance with navigating EPA, OSHA, CDC, and other agencies’ ever-changing landscape.