Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, U.S. EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, U.S. Department of Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, and Mike Boots of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, joined together last week to compliment and promote Virginia’s stormwater nutrient trading program. All noted the multiple environmental and economic benefits of Virginia’s program and held it out as an example to be followed in other states. Brent Fults of Troutman Sanders client Chesapeake Bay Nutrient Land Trust (CBNLT) also spoke at the event and was recognized as a leading private investor building Virginia’s market based nutrient trading program. Troutman Sanders lawyer Shannon Varner has assisted CBNLT in the creation of the commonwealth’s water quality nutrient trading program through legislative changes by overcoming regulatory hurdles and in the creation of Virginia’s first “nutrient banks.” Shannon, Andrea Wortzel, and other members of Troutman’s water quality trading team continue to assist CBNLT and other clients in further market based approaches to environmental compliance and improvement.
Click here to read the press release, which includes this USDA produced video on Virginia’s program. Click here to read more about Troutman Sanders’ Ecosystem Markets practice.