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Washington Designated Microplastics a Federal Priority Contaminant. Third-Party Suits Won't Wait for the Rule to Follow.
April 8th, 2026
WASHINGTON, D.C., On April 2, 2026, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Health and Human Services announced that microplastics and pharmaceuticals would be added to the EPA's Contaminant Candidate List under the Safe Drinking Water Act, marking the first time in the program's history that either category has appeared on the list. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin and HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. jointly announced the designations, framing them as a coordinated step toward understanding the scale of contamination in the nation's drinking water supply. The announcement opened a 60-day public comment period, with finalization of the Sixth Contaminant Candidate List expected by November 17, 2026. For water utilities, industrial manufacturers, and municipalities, the designation does not create immediate compliance obligations....
Federal Climate Law Rescission: Key Implications for the Insurance Industry
March 24th, 2026
WASHINGTON D.C. - On February 12, 2026, the EPA formally rescinded the 2009 Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Endangerment Finding, the scientific and legal determination that enabled federal regulation of emissions under the Clean Air Act. While this action removes several federal compliance obligations - specifically those related to vehicle emission standards...
Twice in Five Weeks: The NaturPak Explosions and the Regulatory Liability No Standard Policy Covers
March 20th, 2026
JANESVILLE, WI — On a Wednesday afternoon in March, emergency responders rushed to a food packaging facility on Innovation Drive for the second time in five weeks. Two more NaturPak employees were flown by helicopter to medical facilities with life-threatening...
Forever Chemicals Are in Missouri’s Tap Water. The Cleanup Bill Could Top $48 Billion — and Nobody Knows Who Pays.
March 30th, 2026
JEFFERSON CITY, MO — Newly released federal testing data confirm that at least six Missouri water systems are delivering tap water with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) concentrations above the legal limit — and that the reckoning for decades of contamination is arriving faster than most utilities, property owners, and businesses are prepared...
AI-Driven Mold Remediation
March 16th, 2026
For decades, mold remediation has been a game of "catch me if you can." Contractors relied on visual inspections, manual moisture mapping, and post-remediation air samples that...
The Spill That Won’t End: One Michigan Crash Dumped 26,000 Pounds of Plastic Into a River Within a Superfund Cleanup Site — and the Cleanup Bill Is Still Growing
March 26th, 2026
ALLEGAN COUNTY, MI — On the morning of January 27, 2026, a Quest Liner semi-trailer hauling 26,000 pounds of plastic pellets lost control on icy northbound Interstate 196 at exit 41, northeast of Saugatuck, and overturned. Within minutes, thousands of...