Air Quality + Climate Change

We provide sophisticated regulatory counseling on all aspects of air quality law, helping clients navigate complex Clean Air Act and state program requirements. Our attorneys work closely with agencies on permitting, enforcement-sensitive compliance questions, and rulemakings, translating evolving regulatory and policy developments into practical, business-focused guidance that reduces enforcement risk and supports clients’ operational and project objectives. We also engage in policy and rulemaking advocacy on key federal and state air programs affecting the energy transition, including carbon standards, the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS), ozone transport programs, and regional haze planning.

We help clients obtain necessary air permits and defend challenges to those permits as needed. Our work spans Title V operating permits; Prevention of Significant Deterioration/New Source Review (PSD/NSR) permitting; minor source construction and operating permits; and representation in contested permit hearings. We work collaboratively with professionals such as plant managers, operations team leaders, environmental managers, outside expert consultants, and in-house counsel to help design best practices to prevent compliance issues. We help clients promptly correct and report problems when they are identified and prevent them from recurring in the future.

Our compliance counseling covers all the major air programs, including PSD/NSR, Title V, New Source Performance Standards (NSPS), National Emission Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants/Maximum Achievable Control Technology (NESHAP/MACT), and State Implementation Plan (SIP) requirements, among others. We conduct facility‑level and portfoliowide auditing and develop corrective action plans tailored to operational realities. We also guide clients through specialized programs, including Risk Management Program (RMP) and Clean Air Act §112(r) General Duty Clause obligations; hydrofluorocarbon (HFC) phasedown requirements; and engine compliance for stationary and mobile sources. For companies operating in California, we have advised on the Advanced Clean Fleets (ACF) rule and the South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) Warehouse Actions and Investments to Reduce Emissions (WAIRE) rule.

We represent clients responding to federal, state, and local enforcement actions, in major air litigation at the appellate level, and in the trenches at state trial and federal district court levels across the U.S. Our track record includes precedent-setting resolutions in Clean Air Act litigation, as well as favorable settlement agreements in New Source Review (NSR), opacity disputes, and other reviews and programs. Additionally, we have challenged federal regulations in the courts of appeal and represented parties in federal circuit courts and at the U.S. Supreme Court in climate change cases.

We routinely defend enforcement actions initiated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and state and local air districts across the country. We assist clients in all stages of the enforcement defense process, from responding to inspections, information requests, and Notices of Violations to negotiating administrative settlements and judicial consent decrees.

In transactions, we provide targeted, air‑focused due diligence to identify liabilities and integration opportunities. We advise buyers, sellers, lenders, and developers on air-related risks in complex corporate and project transactions. We conduct focused air diligence on permitting, historical modifications, and enforcement exposure; assess the impact of air requirements on valuation, timing, and operations; and translate those findings into clear, deal-focused recommendations. Our attorneys negotiate tailored environmental representations, covenants, and indemnities, and manage permit transfers and post-closing compliance strategies so that clients can close transactions with a clear understanding and allocation of air regulatory and enforcement risk.

As one of the nation’s premier energy law firms, we have been at the forefront of climate change and energy transition issues for decades. Our environmental attorneys play a key role in the firm’s renewable and traditional energy practices. We regularly advise clients on matters involving greenhouse gas emissions, carbon offset projects (development, certification, and transactions), development of ESG policies, compliance with climate-related reporting and disclosure requirements, and a variety of emerging issues and liabilities.

Our experience includes advising clients on federal and state disclosure regimes and reporting programs, including EPA’s Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program as well as California’s climate disclosure laws — the Climate Corporate Data Accountability Act (SB 253) and the Climate‑Related Financial Risk Act (SB 261). Beyond counseling and advocacy, we advise clients on developing business plans for new carbon exchanges, helping revise and refine plans, and forming ventures that connect commercial and industrial power purchasers with renewable energy providers. We also advised the creators of the Texas Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) program, refining their plan and approach to gaining legislative approval and commercial viability.