On December 3rd, the DC Circuit heard oral argument in a Clean Air Act case that may set important precedents for EPA’s “risk and technology reviews” of existing Clean Air Act emission standards.   National Association for Surface Finishing v. EPA involves a challenge to EPA’s revised chromium emission standards brought by Greenberg Traurig client National Association for Surface Finishing as well as several environmental groups.  Several key issues are at stake, including (1) whether EPA is obligated to conduct a completely new MACT analysis as part of an RTR review; (2) what constitutes a “development” in practices, processes or control technologies that can justify reducing emission standards; and (3) whether EPA may impose lower emission limits and thus a more “ample margin of safety” without finding that such lower limits are required to achieve an ample margin of safety.  The decision in this case could affect numerous RTR rulemakings that are currently in progress involving several industrial sectors.

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Photo of Christopher Bell Christopher Bell

Chris Bell represents clients in civil and criminal enforcement and investigations, litigation, compliance counseling, emergency incident response, and legislative and regulatory advocacy (including appellate challenges to rulemakings) under all of the major environmental, health, safety and natural resource laws. His enforcement experience includes…

Chris Bell represents clients in civil and criminal enforcement and investigations, litigation, compliance counseling, emergency incident response, and legislative and regulatory advocacy (including appellate challenges to rulemakings) under all of the major environmental, health, safety and natural resource laws. His enforcement experience includes internal investigations, responding to grand jury investigations and agency information requests, and negotiating consent, probation, and debarment agreements. He is currently the EPA Independent Monitor overseeing the nation’s largest investor-owned energy company’s compliance with complex debarment and probation agreements arising from the resolution of a criminal enforcement case brought under the Clean Water Act.

Chris assists buyers, sellers, investors and financial institutions on the environmental aspects of transactions, including conducting due diligence, negotiating the environmental provisions of transactional documents, and identifying and executing insurance-based risk management opportunities. His transactional experience has included upstream, midstream and downstream energy projects, alternative energy projects, and transactions in the manufacturing, logistics, consumer products and chemicals sectors.

He helps clients evaluate and implement compliance and ethics programs (e.g., under the Sentencing Guidelines), and environmental, health and safety management systems (including based on ISO 14001). Chris advises clients on sustainable development, climate change, product and chemical stewardship and regulation, and value chain management. He recently served on an independent committee advising the senior management of a Fortune 50 company on its global sustainability strategy and reporting.