Toxics Law Reporter Index-Summary

HAITI

– Glycerin, diethylene glycol-tainted fever medicine, Haitians may not sue Dutch distributor in Fla. (Fla. Dist. Ct.), 871

HAWAII

– Drain cleaner, noxious fumes and bleeding, duty to indemnify under pollution exclusion clause certified to state (9th Cir.), 876

HAZARDOUS WASTE

– Asbestos, abandonment of boiler in sale of building, buyer appeals disposal ruling (U.S., rev sought), 344
– Burn pits and illnesses, Iraq and Afghanistan veterans sue Halliburton and KBR (N.D. Okla.), 893; Senate committee probes hexavalent chromium and sodium dichromate exposure, 940
– Chemical Assessment and Management Program (ChAMP), risk-based prioritization posting suspended as EPA reviews strategy, 764
– Chlorinated solvents

– – Methylene chloride and acetone contamination, no private right of action under N.Y. Environmental Conservation Law (W.D.N.Y.), 676
– – Nuisance and trespass claims proceed re Contra Costa, Cal. landfill, RCRA claims dismissed (N.D. Cal.), 1012

– Cleanup

– – Burlington N. and Santa Fe Ry. subject to joint and several liability under state superfund law (Mont. Dist. Ct.), 278
– – Site Remediation Reform Act privatizing oversight authority, N.J. governor signs, 610; overview, Analysis & Perspective, 883
– – Voluntary Remediation Program Act, Ga. governor signs, 612

– Cleanup grants

– – Economic recovery legislation

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 1

– – Waterfront sites

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 3518

– Coal ash impoundments, standards

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 493

– Contaminated refinery waste, improper disposal, Texas Oil and Gathering execs plead guilty (S.D. Tex.), 539
– Corrosive and flammable material dumping, state and local governments sue Target, settle similar suit with Kmart (Cal. Super. Ct.), 762
– Cost recovery suit filed under Ind. superfund law reinstated as timely (7th Cir.), 421
– Electronic devices, recycling research, development, and demonstration projects

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 1580, S 1397

– Enforcement, appropriations

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 1105

– Failure to file document, notice not required re violation of state law (Mass. App. Ct.), 907
– Fraud, “as is” provision not bar to buyer suit against seller of contaminated property (Cal. Ct. App.), 811
– Marine Shale oilfield waste processing site, La. Envtl. Quality Dep't to oversee study and cleanup, 487
– Mercury

– – Contamination, state storage permit law enforceable re small waste generators (D.R.I.), 944; natural gas company fined re illegal storage, 1176
– – Pollution reduction

See LEGISLATION, FEDERAL, HR 2190, S 1428

– Metal extraction firm owner sentenced re violations (Colo. Dist. Ct.), 1155
– Oil and industrial waste treatment facility closed for violating La. discharge permit, 215
– Overview of pending bills, chart, 1084
– Pollution control law violations, Or. legislature passes bill to increase penalties, 676
– Precious metals recovery business ordered to identify and clean up contaminants under state law (Colo. Dist. Ct.), 382
– Refinery, improper disposal, Texas Oil and Gathering execs plead guilty (S.D. Tex.), 539
– Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)

– – Arsenic and benzene contamination, state law conspiracy suit remanded (N.D. Ill.), 586
– – Barrel recycling plant owner sentenced for caustic chemicals and waste dumping (N.D. Ind.), 345
– – Benzene storage and treatment, Jamestown, N.M. refinery, Western Refining to pay fine, 1108
– – Cathode ray tubes (CRTs), exporter must dispose waste it tried to illegally ship to Hong Kong, 1071
– – Chemicals, improper transport and abandonment, manufacturer sentence proper (9th Cir.), 452
– – Chlorine gas, improper disposal, water treatment firm foreman and president sentenced (E.D. Tex.), 674
– – Comparable fuels rule, suit seeks to prevent burning of sludge and byproducts (D.C. Cir.), 420; withdrawal proposed, 1023
– – Computer parts recycler, EPA and ICE raid re illegal dumping in China, 146
– – Earth Justice asks reconsideration of EPA rule change excluding previously classified solid material, 185
– – Mercury and lead contamination, N.Y. City to pay penalty and improve disposal, 997
– – Metal plating firm owner sentenced for illegal disposal (E.D. Mo.), 320
– – Radioactive transuranic waste, state may regulate Energy Dep't WIPP-designated waste at Hanford, Wash. site (9th Cir.), 379; stimulus funds to help with cleanup, 486; tri-party agreement and consent decree proposed, 971
– – Riverside County, Cal., solid waste disposal facility on tribal land, $45.1M award against operator upheld (9th Cir.), 1070
– – Shawnee Mission Med. Center settles improper storage claims (EPA), In Brief, 642
– – Solid waste definition rule, comments challenge environmental justice assessment, 880
– – Solvents, former site owner cannot be sued for permit violation (D. Colo.), 272

– Superfund

– – Anaconda Mine, Nev. site, ARCO to pay $10.2M in cleanup and EPA costs, 562
– – Beede Waste Oil, N.H. site, Mass. state agencies to pay $2.85M for cleanup (D.N.H.), 508
– – Contribution, chromium release, manufacturer may be liable for cleanup costs (W.D. Mich.), 967
– – Cost recovery, Dunnett's Cove, Me. tar and poly-aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) contamination, firms liable for dumping in sewer lines (D. Me.), 842
– – Due process, neither CERCLA text nor unilateral EPA orders violate constitution (D.D.C.), 142
– – Flotts Creek, Mich. dumping, seawall construction not necessary cleanup cost (E.D. Mich.), 1107
– – Hardrock mining, financial assurances, EPA plans standards, 847; proposed rule release set, 1134
– – National Priorities List, additions proposed, 515
– – Poultry operations, state claims phosphorous compounds contaminating waters are hazardous waste, sues Tyson and others for cleanup costs (N.D. Okla.), 378; injunction properly denied (10th Cir.), 633
– – Solvent Savers, N.Y. site, defendants agree to pay $14.8M in proposed consent decree (N.D.N.Y.), 271
– – Stringfellow site cleanup, Cal. may stack insurance policies (Cal. Ct. App.), 64; waste contamination pond discharge, insurer exclusion does not bar coverage for indivisible pollution cleanup costs (Cal.), 380
– – Uniroyal prior agreement with EPA may not be used to establish successor cleanup liability (N.D. Ind.), 319

– Transportation

– – DOT seeks comment on preemption of state tort claims when federal hazmat standards met, 179
– – Handling, U-Haul agrees to pay $2M and improve safety practices (Cal. Super. Ct.), 1049
– – House committee agenda includes hazmat program reauthorization, 101
– – Permit violation, waste management firm settles charges (Mass. Super. Ct.), 590

– Universal waste rule, industry seeks EPA clarification on proposal to include pharmaceutical waste, 351
– Wood preserving plant, Tex. agency orders fine, 566
– Zinc smelter and fertilizer plant contamination, Ill. superfund law bars village penalty ordinance suit (C.D. Ill.), 794

HEART DISEASE

– Digitek makers and distributors sued for defective tablets (E.D. Tex.), 535; related MDL master complaint dismissal denied (S.D.W. Va.), 963; related Tex. state cases consolidated (Tex.), 964
– Fen-phen, in pari delicto, use of wife's medication, summary judgment denied (E.D. Pa.), 506
– Hyperkalemia and Yasmin, Yaz, and Ocella contraceptives, failure-to-warn plaintiffs seek consolidation (J.P.M.L.), 900; Philadelphia misleading advertising suits consolidated (Phila. Ct. C.P.), 1128; consolidation granted (S.D. Ill.), 1172

HERBICIDES

– Crop damage, DuPont and BLM negligent, farmers awarded $17M (D. Idaho), 1013; DuPont to appeal, BLM considers motions, 1040
– Diesel fuel mixture, tree trimmer exposure suit dismissed (4th Cir.), 503
– Endocrine Disruptor Screening Program (EDSP), EPA data policies, Analysis & Perspective, 800

HEXAVALENT CHROMIUM

– Building and construction, PPG Indus. to pay $1.5M for N.J. soil contamination cleanup per proposed consent decree (N.J. Super. Ct.), 279
– Dumping, pollution exclusion clause removes insurer duty to defend (Cal. Ct. App.), 845
– Pulmonary fibrosis from workplace exposure, plaintiff cannot make blanket objection to admission of scientific proof (M.D. Ga.), 837
– Sodium dichromate exposure, Iraq war veterans, Senate committee probes Army and KBR actions, 940

HOMELAND SECURITY DEPARTMENT (DHS)

– Chemical security risk oversight, Outlook 2009, 126

HONG KONG

– Cathode ray tubes (CRTs), exporter must dispose waste it attempted to illegally ship, 1071

HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY (HRT)

– Breast cancer

– – Prempro, failure-to-warn claims not preempted (Tex. Ct. App.), 532
– – Specific causation evidence inadmissible under state law (Minn. Ct. App.), 896
– – Time bar applies to nonresident suits under state law (Minn.), 1061
– – Wyeth ghostwriting documents unsealed (E.D. Ark.), 934

HRT

See HORMONE REPLACEMENT THERAPY (HRT)

HYDROGEN SULFIDE

– Drywall, homeowners and builders allege Chinese-manufactured product releases toxins (M.D. Fla.), 201; sulfur and other chemicals found, Nelson (D-Fla) and investigators sickened after visiting homes, 665; MDL panel consolidates suits, 725; CPSC issues status report, 840
– Emissions, Tex. commission settles claims with refiners, oil, and cement firms, 998
– Encephalopathy, expert causation evidence insufficient (D. Neb.), 989
– RCRA, oil well releases endanger health and property values, class certified (S.D. Ill.), 305
– Reactive Airways Dysfunction Syndrome (RADS), physician's differential diagnosis meets Daubert standards, gas plant denied summary judgment (D.N.D.), 89