Schedule and Faculty

8:15 – 8:45 a.m.

CHECK-IN & CONTINENTAL BREAKFAST

8:45 – 9:00 a.m.

WELCOME & PRESENTATION OF DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD

– Sara J. Peterson, Chairperson of the MSBA Environmental, Natural Resources and Energy Law Section

9:00 – 10:00 a.m.

KEYNOTE ADDRESS

Global Warming and the Failure of Business-As-Usual: Time to Shift the Burden of Proof

– Barbara Freese; Attorney, Climate Policy Advocate, and Author

 

Special Webcast Option

Thursday, April 19, 2012
9:00 – 10:00 a.m. (CENTRAL TIME)

Barbara Freese’s keynote presentation also is available via live webcast direct to your computer. If you cannot attend the live course, you may register here for this keynote presentation via live webcast. By joining the webcast, you will be able to see and hear the presentation, access the materials and PowerPoints, and submit questions for the presenter.

10:00 a.m. – 12:10 p.m.

The 2012 Case Law, Regulatory, and Legislative Update

These presentations will highlight key developments during the past year under federal and state environmental statutes, including the Clean Air Act, the Clean Water Act, National Environmental Policy Act, the Minnesota Environmental Policy Act, the Minnesota Environmental Rights Act, CERCLA, MERLA, and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.

 

10:00 – 10:30 a.m.

Climate Change and Air Update

EPA has completed its first year of regulating greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act. At the same time, all of EPA’s greenhouse gas emission regulations are being challenged in court. Yet EPA has also recently issued a number of significant rules to reduce emissions of traditionally regulated pollutants, particularly affecting the utility industry and industrial boilers. This session will give you the latest news on early implementation of EPA’s greenhouse gas rules and the court challenges to them, as well as the highlights of EPA’s other major rulemaking efforts.

– Ann M. Seha

 

10:30 – 11:00 a.m.

Water Update

This session will review legislative and regulatory developments and judicial decisions in water law. A brawl over nutrient standards in Florida spilled over into a national discussion about nutrient regulation by EPA, while a Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Strategy was released in October. In Minnesota, a new governor and new legislative majorities put the squeeze on state regulators to step up the environmental review process and address sulfate standards applicable to wild rice waters. Renewal of the state’s general stormwater permit(s) slowed down in response to stakeholder concerns, and the state scrambled to stop the migration of Asian carp into Minnesota waters.

– Steven W. Nyhus

 

11:00 – 11:10 a.m.

BREAK

 

11:10 – 11:40 a.m.

Environmental Review and Environmental Rights Update

Issues arising under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Minnesota Environmental Policy Act (MEPA), and the Minnesota Environmental Rights Act (MERA) continue to challenge environmental practitioners. This session will analyze the most important recent developments in environmental review and environmental rights, including when and how to evaluate greenhouse gas emissions and climate change impacts in environmental assessments and environmental impact statements.

– Thaddeus R. Lightfoot

 

11:40 a.m. – 12:10 p.m.

CERCLA/MERLA/RCRA Update

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act (CERCLA) and its state analog, the Minnesota Environmental Response and Liability Act (MERLA), also referred to as Superfund laws, provide that persons responsible for releases of hazardous substances may be liable for the investigation and cleanup of sites. The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) governs the management of hazardous wastes. This session will review case law developments and trends in the past year as well as developments related to voluntary cleanup programs and natural resource damage claims.

– Joseph G. Maternowski

12:10 – 1:00 p.m.

LUNCH (on your own)

1:00 – 2:00 p.m.

BREAKOUT SESSION A

 

1. Water and Wetland Basics

For the attorney who is new to environmental law or who just wants a refresher on the basics, this session will provide an overview of key concepts and the practical aspects of wastewater, stormwater and wetlands regulation. The session will explore the fundamentals of the Clean Water Act, point source regulation for municipal and industrial dischargers, and the permitting process, along with the impact of impaired waters designations. The session will also provide an overview of the complex, integrated effort to protect Minnesota’s water resources through stormwater management regulations and wetlands protections at various levels of government. Very few development, redevelopment or land-use projects can be conducted without significant consideration of these protections. Counsel for public and private development and land-use projects will gain familiarity with the structure of stormwater-management and wetlands-protection law in the state.

– Steven W. Nyhus & Michael J. Welch

 

2. The Law and Practicalities of Sustainability

Your clients want to grow and capture the value of sustainability benefits offered by their products and services. Environmental regulations create opportunities and risks for sustainability strategies. This session will provide an overview of trends that affect how a company designs, markets, and manufactures products and practical information about environmental and sustainability management.

– Steven M. Christenson, Jeffrey J. Hayward, Leona E. Lewis & John D. Ostergren

 

3. Renewable Energy and Transmission Challenges

It is impossible to talk about developing renewable energy resources without also talking about developing electricity transmission infrastructure. Throughout the country, there has been a strong emphasis on increasing renewable energy resources, particularly wind power. Each state and regional jurisdiction, however, has taken a different approach to connecting those new renewable resources to the transmission grid that is determined by the jurisdiction’s laws governing renewable energy, state and local laws governing the siting of electric transmission lines, the jurisdiction’s relationship to a state or regional transmission grid, and the presence of federal lands in the transmission corridor. This session will discuss recent legal and policy developments governing electric transmission infrastructure and siting at the federal, state, and regional levels with a focus on states with significant wind energy potential west of the Mississippi River.

– Alexandra B. Klass & Elizabeth J. Wilson

 

4. Understanding Diverse Cultures and Working with Diverse Lawyers and Clients

1.0 elimination of bias credit applied for

As Minnesota becomes increasingly diverse, it is likely that you are, or soon will be, working with lawyers and clients from other cultures. Attorneys representing the African, Latino, Native American, and Muslim communities will describe the unique features of their cultures, discuss the challenges that people from their communities face when working with lawyers, and share practice advice, including cultural sensitivity considerations and communications tips. The panel will also reflect on the effect of greater diversity among lawyers on our profession and our society.

– Heidi A. Drobnick, Imani Jafaar-Mohammad, Alexander J. Kim & Nelson L. Peralta
– Roy S. Ginsburg, moderator

2:00 – 2:15 p.m.

BREAK

2:15 – 3:15 p.m.

BREAKOUT SESSION B

 

5. Basic Environmental Issues in Business Transactions

A client asks you to facilitate a business transaction. What are the key environmental issues that must be evaluated and addressed before closing the transaction? This course will explore some of the basic environmental issues faced in business transactions and offer practical solutions.

– Sara J. Peterson, Jeffery A. Sepesi & Jacob S. Woodard

 

6. Biofuels – Past, Present and Future

Biofuels have been part of the U.S. energy scene dating back to the introduction of the first flex-fuel vehicle, the Model T. The production, distribution and proportion of biofuels in the energy mix have fluctuated over the years due to a host of social, political and economic factors. Despite a somewhat tumultuous past for biofuels, a prominent physicist and educator, Steven Koonin, boldly states that "biofuels could eventually supply 20 percent of global motor fuel demand in a manner that is environmentally responsible." This panel will bring together past, present and future biofuel issues with an overview of the legal framework in Minnesota. Biofuel producers operating an advanced first generation facility and exploring second generation will explain the present and future role of biofuels in our energy mix.

– Randall J. Doyal, Brian Kletscher & Timothy J. Rudnicki

 

7. Environmental Public Interest Law – Leveling the Playing Field

Public interest environmental law can involve representing established environmental non-profits, ad hoc grassroots groups, local governments or private citizens. In almost every instance –
whether the issue is in a legislative, judicial or administrative setting – environmental advocates are likely to be outnumbered and outgunned. This panel will share pitfalls and strategies for success to assist environmental lawyers and other public interest advocates.

– Paula G. Maccabee, Steve Morse & Scott R. Strand

 

8. If It’s Tuesday, This Must Be Omaha: The Ethics of Multi-Jurisdictional Practice

1.0 ethics credit applied for

Attorneys who represent clients in other jurisdictions have to be careful not to cross the line into the unauthorized practice of law. This session will provide a map that lawyers can use to avoid crossing into dangerous ethical territory.

– Eric T. Cooperstein

3:15 – 3:30 p.m.

BREAK

3:30 – 4:30 p.m.

BREAKOUT SESSION C

 

9. Basics of Environmental Review

This presentation will provide an overview of all aspects of environmental review under federal (NEPA) and Minnesota (MEPA) law, including the standards for determining whether environmental review is required, topics that must be addressed in an environmental impact statement, and issues that frequently arise in the judicial review of agencies’ environmental review decisions.

– Richard A. Duncan & David J. Zoll

 

10. Environmental Issues at the County Level

County governments operate at the forefront in environmental protection. Every day, counties address issues of hazardous and solid waste in addition to unique issues such as conservation easements, wind turbines, solar panels, light rail, and transit-oriented development. In this discussion, panelists will look at both day-to-day and unique legal issues confronting Minnesota counties.

– Michael L. Lynn, Harry D. McPeak, Charles H. Salter & Timothy A. Sime

 

11. Navigating Soil Vapor Intrusion Issues

If you are involved in the buying, selling or refinancing of real property, you will likely find it necessary to understand vapor intrusion risk issues and how they may affect the liability assurances you are seeking. Over the past few years, both federal and state regulators have emphasized vapor intrusion as a potential concern at contaminated properties, but several tools are available to navigate this evolving topic. This session will feature a discussion of available MPCA technical guidance for evaluating risks posed by contaminant vapors by exploring the use of intrusion screening values, the use of multiple lines of evidence in decision-making, and assessing the need for and type of remedial strategies when exposure risk is identified. The session will also include a discussion of the types of liability assurances available from the MPCA Brownfield programs and outline typical site scenarios demonstrating how and when soil vapor intrusion issues most commonly arise and can be successfully addressed.

– Daniel R. Holte, Rick Jolley & Katherine A. Roek

 

12. Nonferrous Metallic Mining in Minnesota: Regulatory and Legal Issues

The state of Minnesota has a long history of mining. Until recently, only iron ore mining has been proposed in the state, but high metal prices have made deposits containing copper, nickel and platinum economically viable. In this session, an MPCA expert will discuss and share perspective on the agency’s experience with proposed nonferrous mining in the state, including the applicable environmental regulations for nonferrous mining operations and evolving regulatory issues.

– Suzanne Baumann

4:30 – 5:30 p.m.

ANNUAL ENVIRONMENTAL INSTITUTE RECEPTION