A client alert issued today by Husch Blackwell’s environmental practice group details a major reversal of Obama-era policy by the Trump Administration. The EPA announced it will not issue final regulations under CERCLA Section 108(b) imposing financial responsibility requirements on the hardrock mining industry. Abandoning a December 1, 2016 proposed rule, the EPA emphasized that after carefully evaluating public comments, statutory authority, and the extensive record it had concluded that the minimal environmental risk involved in modern mining practices combined with existing state and federal financial assurance requirements made the proposed rule unnecessary and unduly burdensome. Read the entire client alert here.
