We have undertaken a number of special projects to assist our clients in efficiently responding to the challenges of Superfund and RCRA proceedings and Clean Air Act implementation. A capsule summary of some of these special projects is provided below.

Most Superfund cases eventually result in a settlement agreement. These agreements cover a wide range of topics important not only to the signatories but also to others confronting similar issues throughout the country. The Network gives its 170 members prompt access to these settlements as well as to a large number of EPA guidance documents that are not routinely available. Members also receive the Report From Washington, a Superfund newsletter, and an Issue Analysis, an in-depth article for Superfund practitioners,on a bi-monthly basis. On-line database searches are frequently performed at member request, i.e., RODScan, CERCLIS, FINDS, and SETS. In addition, the Information Network sponsors semi-annual conferences to allow members to discuss with EPA and each other important and cutting-edge issues affecting the implementation of Superfund.

John Quarles and Michael Steinberg lead the Morgan Lewis team serving The Information Network. They are assisted by James Maysonett and Lisa McFadden, who regularly contribute to the bi-monthly reports. The Network maintains a complete library of Superfund Records of Decision, Consent Decrees, Unilateral Administrative Orders, Administrative Orders on Consent, and EPA guidance documents. The Network recently released a survey report entitled Superfund Municipal Liability Settlements. Other publications sponsored by the Information Network include the Superfund Cleanup Decision Handbook (analyzing EPA s 1995 revised model consent decree for Superfund cleanups) and the Superfund Negotiation Handbook (which provides a thorough analysis of EPA s Model AOC for RI/FS work).

Superfund Settlements Project

John Quarles and Michael Steinberg serve as counsel to the Superfund Settlements Project, a group of 10 major corporations that have united to seek constructive solutions to the recurring problems that delay the resolution of Superfund cases. The Project s primary goal is to resolve Superfund cases in a prompt and equitable manner and to minimize transaction costs associated with Superfund implementation. Toward this end, the group has worked closely with EPA and the Department of Justice and has testified before Congress regarding both liability and settlement issues. The Project recently issued an in-depth report on EPA s implementation of the 1995 Superfund administrative reforms. The group provides a unique forum for industry leaders to speak with EPA about the Superfund program and also gives governmental officials an opportunity to voice their opinions about how industry could make Superfund work.

The single most important factor in determining the cost of a Superfund cleanup is the remedy selected by EPA in its Record of Decision (ROD). RODScan is a special computerized service developed by Kenneth Myers that can identify and retrieve all RODs that address issues of particular concern to a client. For example, in negotiations regarding the appropriate cleanup level for mercury, a client might inquire about the levels EPA has established at Superfund sites elsewhere in the country. Our computer program enables us to identify immediately all RODs that address mercury and to provide a quick printout of the pertinent portions, or complete copies, of the RODs. RODScan is also available on CD-Rom (published by Clark Boardman Callaghan). Additional information on RODScan can be obtained from Andrea Preate, Lisa McFadden, Kenneth Myers, Kenneth Rubin, or any of the other environmental practice group coordinators.

Patterned after the Superfund Settlements Project, the RCRA Corrective Action Project is a group of major corporations working together to develop constructive suggestions for EPA s implementation of the RCRA corrective action authorities. The group has been instrumental in many of EPA s RCRA corrective action program improvements, including the "stabilization" initiative and the Corrective Action Management Unit (CAMU) rulemaking. A recent Project initiative involves encouraging EPA to adopt further administrative reforms to the corrective action program similar to those implemented successfully in the Superfund program. The Project also maintains a compendium of RCRA corrective action-related documents, including EPA guidance documents and administrative decisions, for use by the membership. John Quarles and Lowell Martin provide leadership for the RCRA Corrective Action Project.

The Clean Air Implementation Project comprises more than 20 industrial corporations that united to participate more effectively in EPA s development of regulations under the Clean Air Act and to provide educational materials to members in implementing the federal clean air regulations. The organization places particular emphasis on federal permitting and enforcement requirements under the 1990 Clean Air Act. Under the guidance of Bill Lewis, the Project has filed extensive comments on a number of EPA s proposed regulations. In addition, the Project has prepared a State Permit Program Manual, a Model Permit Rule, and various documents providing guidance on key clean air issues. The Project is the lead industry petitioner in the challenge to EPA s operating permit rule (Clean Air Implementation Project v. EPA).

Launched in January 1995, the Clean Air Act Information Network was organized to provide important educational and informational services to corporations, law firms, and other entities in connection with implementation of the 1990 Clean Air Act Amendments. The Clean Air Network provides three principal services to enable members to be knowledgeable about, and respond to, complex and evolving clean air requirements. First, the Clean Air Network develops and distributes Bimonthly Reports to members. Each report contains an Issue Analysis addressing a timely subject that environmental professionals and lawyers must grapple with in complying with federal and state clean air requirements as well as a Washington Report, which contains articles summarizing recent regulatory, judicial, and legislative activities. Second, the Clean Air Network sponsors semi-annual conferences at which members discuss important issues with knowledgeable EPA and state officials. Third, for its members use, the Clean Air Network has created an extensive computer accessible database containing hundreds of EPA policy documents, guidance memoranda, final rules, technical documents, and consent decrees.

Bill Lewis heads the Morgan Lewis team staffing the Clean Air Network. Michael McCord, Denise Grant, Lisa McFadden, and Linda Eaton all contribute to preparing Bimonthly Reports, arranging for semi-annual conferences, maintaining the Network s database, and providing other services to members.

Morgan Lewis large compendium of spill reporting requirements, identifying in detail all applicable federal and state environmental laws, was first published in 1992 by Clark Boardman Callaghan and was recently updated as 1997 Environmental Spill Reporting Procedures Handbook. The manual serves as a guide to reporting obligations and provides telephone information, the text of regulations, and lists. Because of the substantial penalties that have been imposed for failure to report a spill promptly, this manual was designed to facilitate the identification of reportable quantities and the filing of any necessary reports. Contact Kenneth Myers for further information.

Eric Rothenberg and Mike Steinberg have counseled groups of potentially responsible parties in resolving allocation and related disputes arising in connection with state and federal Superfund enforcement matters. These efforts are facilitated by an in-house consulting staff that prepares customized, site-specific allocation databases.