Category: Environmental Law

  • Rachel Carson

    Rachel Carson in the United States Carson, Rachel (1907-1964) in Environmental Law Aquatic biologist and author of four books, including Silent Spring, the book credited with starting the modem environmental movement. In Silent Spring, Carson argues that pesticide use, notably DDT […]

  • Promulgation

    Promulgation in United States Promulgation Definition The order given to cause a law to be executed, and to make it public. It differs from publication. 1 Bl. Comm. 45; St. 6 Hen. VI. c. 4. Promulgation in Foreign Legal Encyclopedias Link Description Promulgation, […]

  • Premanufacturing Notice

    Premanufacturing Notice in the United States Premanufacturing Notice (PMN) in Environmental Law The notice that must be filed with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) before a new chemical is manufactured or imported. The premanufacturing notice is required by the Toxic Substances […]

  • Pretreatment

    Pretreatment in the United States Pretreatment in Environmental Law Methods used to remove enough pollutants from industrial wastewater before it is sent to a municipal treatment plant so that the pollutants do not cause the plant to violate its permit. Pretreatment is also used to ensure that […]

  • Prevention Of Significant Deterioration

    Prevention of Significant Deterioration in the United States Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) in Environmental Law A program under the Clean Air Act designed to preserve the air quality of an area after it has met or exceeded the national standards for various pollutants. If an […]

  • Particulate

    Particulate in the United States Particulate in Environmental Law A substance, either liquid or solid, that is small enough to be suspended in air. Particulates may be tiny enough to be invisible, or they may compare to soot in size. Those larger than 10 microns in diameter tend to be filtered […]

  • Pollution Control

    Pollution Control in the United States Pollution Control in Environmental Law The EPA is the best known of the agencies charged with protecting the environment, but it is by no means the only one. Even after the EPA assumed centralized responsibility for environmental laws, other federal […]

  • Potentially Responsible Parties

    Potentially Responsible Parties in the United States Potentially Responsible Parties (PRPs) in Environmental Law Persons who fit into any of the categories Congress established in the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act to force cleanup of abandoned hazardous […]

  • Operable Unit

    Operable Unit in the United States Operable Unit in Environmental Law A part of a hazardous waste site that is treated separately from the rest of the site to facilitate a remedy. The job of removing, neutralizing, and containing waste can be lengthy and overwhelming at a contaminated site. […]

  • Orphan Share

    Orphan Share in the United States Orphan Share in Environmental Law A term used in cases involving the clean i up of a hazardous waste site to describe the proportion of potentially responsible parties who are insolvent, no longer in existence, or unavailable and therefore unable to contribute […]

  • Ozone

    Ozone in the United States Ozone (Os) in Environmental Law A form of oxygen composed of three molecules of oxygen instead of the more common combination of two. Ozone is important in two environmental situations: it is a pollutant at ground level; and it protects the earth from ultraviolet […]

  • Notice Letter

    Notice Letter in the United States Notice Letter in Environmental Law One of two types of letters in environmental law. The first is one sent by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to inform a company, city, or other party that it is a potentially responsible party for cleanup of a […]

  • Notice Of Noncompliance

    Notice of Noncompliance in the United States Notice of Noncompliance in Environmental Law A notice sent by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or a state agency to inform the recipient that it is not complying with specified sections of the Clean Air Act. The notice is preliminary to […]

  • Notice Of Violation

    Notice of Violation in the United States Notice of Violation (NOV) in Environmental Law A notice from the Environmental Protection Agency or a state agency to advise the recipient that the recipient has violated a statute, regulation, or the terms of a permit. NOVs also detail how a hearing or […]

  • Notice And Comment

    Notice and Comment in the United States Notice and Comment in Environmental Law A procedure used in administrative law to allow interested parties to review proposed rules and participate in making rules and finalizing proposals. Since environmental law is a type of administrative law, the […]