Webinars

Webinars

Webinar Materials 06-10-2020

Supreme Court Clean Water Act Decision April 23, 2020: What Does it Mean for Future Groundwater Permitting?

June 10, 2020

Speakers
Margaret Fawal
Katherine Sochacki
Nicolas Frederick

Moderator
Fred R. Wagner


On April 23, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision in the County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund, a much-watched case out of the Ninth Circuit involving the scope of the Clean Water Act’s Section 402 permitting requirements for point source discharges. In the case, the Supreme Court determined whether a Section 402 permit is required when pollutants originate from a point source but are conveyed to navigable waters via groundwater (this has also been referred to as the “conduit theory”). The Court found that the CWA can apply to the pollution that travels through groundwater. However, the Court significantly narrowed the standard that the Ninth Circuit used when it upheld the conduit theory. The Supreme Court ultimately designed its own test, concluding that the CWA requires a permit if "the addition of the pollutants through groundwater is the functional equivalent of direct discharge from the point source into navigable waters." While the Court identified a number of factors that may be relevant to determining what is the “functional equivalent of a direct discharge,” including both time and distance, it acknowledged that the application of this new standard will be left to the lower courts and regulators on a case-by-case basis.

Long story short, as the Court acknowledged in its opinion (and as criticized in the dissents written by Justice Thomas (and joined by Justice Gorsuch) and by Justice Alito), what constitutes a “functional equivalent of a direct discharge” will have to be determined on a case-by-case basis. While the Court provided some guidance in terms of what factors may be relevant, it will be up to the lower courts and regulators, including EPA, to make these determinations.

View the presentation materials from our speakers below

Margaret Fawal & Katherine Sochacki Presentation
Nicolas Frederick Presentation

Password: NAEPJune10

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Webinar Materials 05-21-2020

NAEP Annual Business Meeting

May 21, 2020

Speakers
Betty Dehoney

With presentations from
Marie Campbell, Bill Plumpton, Laura Thorne
Joseph Musil, Rona Spellecacy, & Christopher Garvey


With NAEP’s concern and commitment to our member’s health and safety combined with governmental restrictions on travel and assembly, the decision was made to conduct a virtual Annual Business Meeting for 2019–20. The review of this year's accomplishments and a preview of what is to come will be provided via a webinar on May 21. 

The Annual Business Meeting will enable real-time engagement among our membership, volunteer leaders, and staff. As a member of our association, we want you to know about the health and vitality of our association and the work that your board of directors has done to advance NAEP’s services to you and to our profession. 

View the presentation materials 

Annual Business Meeting Presentation

Our 2019 Year-End Report outlines details for those who are interested in seeing a full breakdown. Note: Reporting styles have been updated from 2018 to 2019.

Password: NAEPMay21

Watch on Vimeo

 
Webinar Materials 07-15-2020

NEPA Case Law Update

July 15, 2020

Speakers
P.E. Hudson, Esq., Dep't of the Navy, Office of General Counsel
Michael Smith, Principal, Ecology & Environment (Member of WSP)

Moderator
Fred R. Wagner, Venable LLP


This webinar reviewed substantive National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) cases issued by United States Courts of Appeals in 2019. The implications of the decisions and relevance to NEPA practitioners will be explained. This webinar summarized the more detailed paper prepared for this webinar.

The paper briefly explains, with an emphasis on the substantive NEPA findings, each opinion issued by the U.S. Court of Appeals. The paper identifies statistics regarding the NEPA appellate opinions, such as ten-year record of NEPA cases, organized by circuit, and by year. The paper also identifies the agencies involved in each case, and presents statistics relevant to the agencies; the paper further identifies the prevailing ratio of federal agencies, including by agency and by document type (categorical exclusion, environmental assessment, environmental impact statement).

The paper analyzes the trends in the court opinions involving NEPA for 2019, with an emphasis on substantive NEPA practice, and by grouping of the cases. Finally, each court opinion is paraphrased and organized in a manner easy to read for practitioners to find the court’s ruling. Appellate opinions are grouped and analyzed by the agency. Past trends include challenges to the purpose and need, alternatives considered, public comment, scientific impact assessment methodologies, GHG emissions and climate change impact assessment, incomplete or unavailable information, determination of significance, segmentation, duty to supplement, connected actions, federal actions, cumulative impact assessment, mitigation, monitoring, and adaptive management. 

Please continue to stay informed on this important topic with the recording and presentation materials from the webinar. 

View Presentation Slides
View Presentation Paper

Need a full screen? Watch on Vimeo.

 
Webinar Materials 09-02-2020

Multiple Approaches to Improving Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Within Environmental Professions

September 2, 2020

Speakers
Nuriyah A. Boné-OwensCultural Entrepreneur, Cultural Ventures LLC 
Sharon Minchak, V.P., Talent & Technology Operations Director, Jacobs Environmental Solutions
Nan Renner, Senior Director of Learning, Design and Innovation, Birch Aquarium at Scripps, UC San Diego

Moderator
Ron Deverman, CEP, Vice President/National Environmental Planning Leader, STV Inc.


As Environmental Professionals you may be wondering what you do to be better informed, more aware, and better support our employees, communities, and take action to make effective and lasting change in the areas of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Our panel consists of three experts in a broad range of environments who will each speak from different perspectives about solutions to the same underlying issues.

Nan Renner, Senior Director of Learning, Design, and Innovation, Birch Aquarium at Scripps, UC San Diego, will speak about her work with UC San Diego’s Birch Aquarium at Scripps and CREATE STEM Success Initiative. Nuriyah Boné-Owens, Diversity and Inclusion Consultant, will speak about setting the foundation for programmatic Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives, and Sharon Minchak, Talent and Technology Operations Director, Jacobs Environmental Solutions, will showcase some of their initiatives that have been successful and talk about what that means.

Attendees will learn and get ideas from the examples shown and insights shared that they can bring back to their workplaces, associations, local chapters, and personal lives to help combat racism and bridge the inequities that exist in the environmental profession.

Please continue to stay informed on this important topic with the recording and presentation materials from the webinar. 

Nuriyah A. Boné-Owens Presentation Slides
Sharon Minchak Presentation Slides
Nan Renner Presentation Slides

Need a full screen? Watch on Vimeo.

 
Webinar Materials 10-08-2020

Greenhouse Gas Emissions Thresholds: A Cautionary Tale from California

October 8, 2020

Speakers

Michael Hendrix, Chairperson, AEP Climate Change Committee 

Jennifer ReedAir Quality Services Manager, Dudek

Rich WalterVice President, Environmental Planning, ICF

Moderator
Laura ThorneBS, PMP Performance Improvement Specialist


Environmental review of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in California has evolved since 2010, when GHG emissions analysis was first incorporated into the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Court cases and improved threshold methodologies have shaped the current landscape, yet the absence of consistent guidance from agencies and the threat of legal challenges test Lead Agencies’ ability to meet increasingly aggressive statewide goals and local/regional climate action plans. The California Association of Environmental Professionals (AEP) Climate Change Committee has developed proposed solutions in a forthcoming white paper. This panel will discuss the evolution of GHG emissions analysis in CEQA and provide solutions.

Presentation Slides

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