Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP has one of the premier air quality compliance and permitting, enforcement, litigation, and regulatory advocacy practices in the country. With a commanding, highly qualified air quality team, our experience features ample exposure to the manufacturing industry and includes stationary, mobile, and indirect sources of emissions.

From Washington, DC to California, our air practice is broad and varied, a result of our comprehensive knowledge, experience, and perspective regarding all aspects of air quality regulation, counseling, and litigation, from facility-specific to local to national to international issues. Our clients and experience span most major industrial groups affected by air quality concerns, such as automobile and non-road vehicle manufacturers, oil and gas producers, aftermarket parts distributors, pipeline companies, chemical manufacturers, aluminum manufacturers, electric utilities, pulp and paper companies, the steel industry, solid waste facilities, cement manufacturing facilities, liquefied natural gas storage and distribution companies, ethanol and biofuel companies, e-fuel companies, waste-to-energy facilities, agricultural operations, mining operations, and many others.

We work with clients on both traditional emissions and climate change emissions—the primary vehicle the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) uses to regulate climate is the Clean Air Act (CAA)—serving and guiding them as needs evolve. We provide counsel on a full range of CAA matters, including strategic advice on regulatory and policy matters, compliance counseling, rulemaking advocacy, enforcement defense, permitting, litigation, and business transactions, and have since shortly after enactment of the CAA in 1970.

Members of our air practice—comprised of skilled attorneys focused on air quality issues and PhD scientists with EPA and other relevant governmental experience—work closely with and contribute to our Chambers-top-ranked climate change team. Our environmental practice, and many of our lawyers, are ranked Band 1 nationally by Chambers USA and Chambers Global. We are top ranked by Legal 500, and since 2012, we have been designated an Environmental Group of the Year by Law360 eleven times. We also maintain the top national ranking for environmental law in US News-Best Lawyers regionally in each state where our team lawyers are based.

Regulatory and Policy Matters

Our air regulatory team serves as lead counsel for many of our clients to advocate on federal, state, and local rulemakings from the proposal stage to final regulations, administrative proceedings, appeals, and related implementation and compliance matters. Given this extensive experience, we are invited to participate in EPA, state, and regional advisory committees and planning organizations. We assist in commenting on air regulatory policy issues and agency guidance and work closely with clients to address: development, review, and implementation of National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS); control of new and existing sources under the New Source Performance Standards (NSPS); permitting under New Source Review (NSR) and Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) programs; visibility impairment and Regional Haze; control of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) through technology-based MACT standards; the Risk Management Program (RMP); EPA and California motor vehicle emission standards, motor vehicle fuels, and fuel additives; carbon and market-based emission allowance trading programs, such as the Acid Rain Program and the federal NOx Budget Trading Program; transportation conformity and general conformity determinations; requirements for state and federal Title V operating permit programs; and issues related to Tribal implementation of CAA programs.

New and Existing Source Permitting

We regularly handle new and existing source permitting matters, helping our clients swiftly navigate the permit process, seeking to obtain permits as quickly as possible and avoid terms that constrain operations. We advocate for permit terms that are clear and accurate, avoid regulatory overreach, and provide operational flexibility. We counsel clients on awareness of unnecessary permitting requirements and how to avoid or challenge them, as well as permit compliance.

Our team assists with new and revised permits, negotiates permit terms and conditions, prepares witnesses and material for public meetings and hearings, litigates unfavorable permitting decisions, and defends permits challenged by citizen groups or other third parties. Specifically, we have experience with NSR, PSD, Title V, state permits, Compliance Assurance Monitoring (CAM) plans, MACT requirements under CAA Section § 112, and more.

Compliance Counseling and Auditing

The complexity of air regulations, permitting, toxics, and mobile source regulations means that companies must develop robust compliance programs, and our air quality team is here to help. We assist clients in understanding how regulations apply to their operations, when permits are required, and how to comply by identifying, interpreting, and advising on permitting and regulatory requirements including PSD, NSPS, and NSPS applicability determinations; educating company officials; developing and implementing internal programs to support compliance certifications; and designing and performing environmental audits and compliance assessments.

We support clients in working with federal and state air quality oversight agencies on compliance plans. For example, we have prepared applications for waivers and variances from state and federal emission standards and petitions for approval of alternatives or exceptions to requirements.

We also advise clients on compliance with federal and state motor vehicle and fuels standards, such as Renewable Fuel Standards (RFS) and Low-Carbon Fuel Standards (LCFS). We have counseled heavy-duty engine and vehicle manufacturers on compliance issues related to production plans, import requirements, state authority to adopt motor vehicle standards, and related matters. We also advise fleet owners on compliance with California Air Resources Board (CARB) in-use emission standards for heavy-duty on-highway vehicles and non-road equipment.

Litigation and Enforcement

Litigation in federal district and appeals courts with respect to EPA actions under the CAA is frequent and raises issues important to client compliance obligations and development of the law. Administrative actions and state court litigation are also common.

Our air lawyers represent clients in groundbreaking and precedent-setting litigation both challenging the EPA and supporting the EPA against challenges from environmental groups, state governments, and others. Our experience includes litigation related to EPA’s major enforcement initiatives, such as refinery flaring, air toxics enforcement, NSR enforcement, and mobile source enforcement. We defend clients in enforcement actions brought by federal, state, and local agencies, such as CARB, as well as in citizen suits and multiparty challenges.

We have also negotiated settlements under which EPA has voluntarily revised regulations or policy or issued helpful interpretations or guidance.

Business Transactions

Business transactions often involve CAA and air regulatory and compliance issues. Our transactional team coordinates air quality aspects of due diligence investigations and advises investors, sellers, and buyers on regulatory risks regulated to air quality. We prosecute and defend commercial indemnification claims between facility buyers and sellers based on costs associated with air quality compliance matters. We also counsel clients regarding emission allowance transactions under market-based programs.