Tuesday, May 8, 2007

8:00 a.m.
Registration and Continental Breakfast

9:00 a.m. – 9:10 a.m.
Opening Remarks (Program Co-Chairs)

Philip Ahrens, Pierce Atwood LLP, Portland, ME
Pamela Hill, Deputy Regional Counsel, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA

9:10 a.m. – 9:30 a.m.
Welcome and Introductory Remarks

Secretary Ian A. Bowles, Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, Boston, MA

9:30 a.m. – 11:20 a.m.
Directions in New England Environmental Policy
U.S. EPA Region 1 New England Regional Administrator Robert Varney and the six New England state environmental agency Commissioners will describe the environmental priorities and recent initiatives of their respective agencies, focusing in particular on new approaches to environmental regulation and on matters of concern to federal and state environmental policy makers.  The speakers will also take a longer view of environmental policy and provide their visions of the environmental agenda for New England over the coming years.

Moderator:
Robert W. Varney, Regional Administrator, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA

Panelists:
Thomas S. Burack, Commissioner, NH Dept. of Environmental Services, Concord, NH
David P. Littell, Commissioner, ME Dept. of Environmental Protection, Augusta, ME
Gina McCarthy, Commissioner, CT Dept. of Environmental Protection, Hartford, CT
Arleen O’Donnell, Acting Commissioner, MA Dept. of Environmental Protection, Boston, MA
W. Michael Sullivan, Director, RI Dept. of Environmental Management, Providence, RI
Jeffrey Wennberg, Commissioner, VT Dept. of Environmental Conservation, Waterbury, VT

 

11:20 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Networking Break

11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Breakout Session 1: Air and Climate
Panelists will focus on the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative and proposals to address climate change, implementing air toxics regulations at the federal level and state initiatives that augment the federal program, and recent developments in state and federal air permitting.

Moderator:
David W. Dixon, Dirigo Environmental Consultants, Whitefield, ME

Panelists:
Ann Berwick, MA Undersecretary for Energy, Boston, MA
Thomas Olivier, Senior Enforcement Counsel, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA
David W. Wright, ME Dept. of Environmental Protection, Bureau of Air Quality, Augusta, ME

11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Breakout Session 2: Superfund & Brownfields
Recent significant developments affecting Superfund litigation and brownfields transactions have created pitfalls to be avoided.  This panel will address several such areas of change including the use of CERCLA 107(a) for direct third party claims based on post-Aviall case law as well as modified EPA consent decrees and state efforts to facilitate contribution claims; recent changes to the all appropriate inquiry standards for environmental site assessments and continuing obligations to obtain protection from CERCLA liability; trends in natural resource damages (NRD) litigation and settlements in the New England states; and recent approaches to brownfields sites  in New England.

Moderator:
Matthew Ranelli, Shipman & Goodwin LLP, Hartford, CT

Panelists:
Mark Barash, Senior Attorney, Office of the Solicitor, U.S. Dept. of the Interior, Newton, MA
Joanna Jerison, Chief, Superfund Legal Office, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA
Kristen W. Sherman, Adler Pollock & Sheehan, Providence, RI

12:15 p.m. – 12:45 p.m.
Luncheon

12:45 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.
Introduction of Keynote Speaker
Carl Dierker, Regional Counsel, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA

Keynote Speaker
Roger R. Martella Jr., Acting U.S. EPA General Counsel, Washington, DC

1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.                                                    
Breakout Session 3:  Water
Panelists will address implementation of the Clean Water Act Section 401 certification process; permitting, implementation and enforcement of the Phase II final rule requiring NPDES permit coverage for stormwater discharges from a wide variety of sources and activities; the current state of TMDL development and implementation in New England; and other current topics including post-Rapanos wetlands developments.

Moderator:      
Michael J. Quinn, McLane, Graf, Raulerson & Middleton, Portsmouth, NH
                       
Panelists:        
Patrick Parenteau, Vermont Law School, South Royalton, VT
Christopher Kilian, Conservation Law Foundation, Montpelier, VT
Ann Williams, Senior Assistant Regional Counsel, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA

1:30 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.                                                    
Breakout Session 4:  Ethics (ethics credit applied for)
Panelists will discuss current restrictions and efforts to ease restrictions on cross-border practice in the New England states and the limits on direct communications with an agency in the absence of the agency's counsel.

Moderator:                
James Ray, Robinson & Cole LLP, Hartford, CT

Panelists:
Peter G. Beeson, Devine Millimet & Branch PA, Manchester, NH
G. Dana Bisbee, Pierce Atwood LLP, Portsmouth, NH
Sharon Wells, Assistant Deputy Ethics Official and Senior Assistant Regional Counsel, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA

2:30 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.
Networking Break

2:45 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.                                                    
Energy Facility Siting
The siting of energy projects requires a multifaceted approach involving local, state and federal agencies, including environmental protection agencies.  Siting regulations and laws have become increasingly complex, requiring extensive study and review and provisions for public involvement.  This panel will discuss recent environmental issues faced by each in siting energy facilities, including wind projects, LNG facilities and transmission lines.

Moderator:      
Carl Dierker, Regional Counsel, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA

Panelists:        
Daniel F. Caruso, Chair, Connecticut Siting Council, New Britain, CT
Peter Didisheim, Director of Advocacy, Natural Resources Council of Maine, Augusta, ME
William L. Lahey, Anderson & Kreiger LLP, Cambridge, MA

3:45 p.m. – 5:00 p.m.                                                    
Enforcement                                                                                       
This session will focus on recent developments and future directions in federal and state enforcement in New England, including recent case law as well as compliance and enforcement priorities.  The session also will include a discussion of the role of alternative dispute resolution in enforcement and a perspective on enforcement from the private bar.

Moderator:      
Susan Studlien, Director, Office of Environmental Stewardship, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA

Panelists:        
Joel Blumstein, Chief, Regulatory Legal Office, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA
James R. Milkey, Chief, Environmental Protection Division, MA Attorney General's Office, Boston, MA       
Michelle N. O'Brien, Mackie Shea O'Brien, PC, Boston, MA
Elissa Tonkin, ADR Specialist, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA

5:00 p.m.
Closing Remarks

Philip Ahrens, Pierce Atwood LLP, Portland, ME
Pamela Hill, Deputy Regional Counsel, U.S. EPA, Region 1, Boston, MA

5:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Reception

Sponsored by Adler Pollock & Sheehan PC; Goodwin Procter LLP; McLane, Graf, Raulerson & Middleton; Pierce Atwood LLP; Primmer Piper Eggleston & Cramer, PC and Robinson & Cole LLP

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region 1
Boston Bar Association
Connecticut Bar Association, Environmental Law Section
Maine State Bar Association, Natural Resources and Environmental Law Section
New Hampshire Bar Association, Environmental and Natural Resources Law Section
Rhode Island Bar Association
Vermont Bar Association, Environmental Law Section

Adler Pollock & Sheehan PC
Goodwin Procter LLP
McLane, Graf, Raulerson & Middleton
Pierce Atwood LLP
Primmer Piper Eggleston & Cramer, PC
Robinson & Cole LLP