Environmental Law

Environmental risks are one of the leading challenges that businesses face. Massive liability can be triggered through mere ownership of real estate that has been contaminated by prior owners. Failure to follow environmental regulatory requirements can impose civil and criminal liability on managers and corporations alike. Successful redevelopment of real estate can be hampered through fear of unknown risks.

Services Offered:

Real Estate
For clients involved in developing real estate, our lawyers have found that it is important to properly assess and describe the environmental risk posed by a given site. We can assist in making sure that Phase I and II environmental audits comply with current standards and, at the same time, are properly designed to maximize the discovery of possible environmental problems even if that means going beyond the commonly accepted minimum requirements. Our lawyers are also experienced in weighing the information obtained through environmental audits and clearly describing the actual risk to potential buyers and lenders posed by a given site.

Mergers and Acquisitions
Clients faced with environmental challenges when attempting to purchase or sell existing industrial and commercial properties turn to BrownWinick for counsel. Our attorneys provide assistance in facing the unique challenges that can be posed by historical practices on existing sites. We can assist with negotiating purchase agreements and merger terms that maximize shareholder value even on sites impacted by contaminates. Our attorneys are also experienced dealing with lenders and investors that are concerned with possible environmental risk in order to prevent known or unknown environmental issues from barring reasonable lender and investor participation.

Regulated Industries
Regulated companies face unique challenges with air and water permit issues, audits, superfund investigations, and spill responses. Our attorneys can help those companies navigate through the regulatory maze and the many agencies that regulate modern industry. We have represented clients before EPA Regional offices, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Drug Administration, U.S. Department of Transportation, U.S. Coast Guard, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and multiple state and local agencies, including the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and the Mines and Minerals Bureau. BrownWinick assists clients with the following issues:

• Water Quality and NPDES permits
• Air Quality and Title V, PSD, and synthetic minor air permits
• RCRA
• CERCLA/Superfund liability
• Agricultural Chemicals and Fertilizers
• Industrial Chemicals
• Solid Waste
• Petroleum
• Right to Know
• Brownfields
• Environmental Audits
• Recycling and Reclamation
• Waste Water Discharge
• Sham Permitting and Co-location PSD issues

Agricultural Industries
Increasingly, our agricultural clients are faced with third party and governmental claims, nuisance claims, and air and water permitting challenges formerly associated with traditional manufacturers. BrownWinick assists those clients with all environmental related issues they may face.

Financial
Lenders and financial institutions are frequently faced with challenging decisions when faced with debtors who are involved in environmentally sensitive matters. BrownWinick's attorneys help those clients take such challenges.

Securities and BioFuels
Our environmental attorneys have extensive experience working closely with BrownWinick's Renewable Fuels practice group on dozens of projects involving environmental issues arising from the need for accurate and timely securities disclosures. These tasks include site assessments, air emissions, co-location and support facility determinations, PSD and Title V determinations, Brownfields redevelopment, water source permitting, and NPDES permitting.

Litigation
BrownWinick's environmental attorneys have provided legal representation to clients on environmental matters at all levels of litigation, whether at the administrative, district court, or appellate levels. Our attorneys are experienced in working with experts on complex scientific issues and in researching and arguing difficult legal environmental regulations and laws. We represent clients on environmental matters before the Iowa Department of Natural Resources, the Department of Agriculture, Region VII of the Environmental Protection Agency, and other agencies.