Environmental

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Please note that views presented in blog articles are those of the author, not those of the Wisconsin Department of Justice, the section, nor the State Bar of Wisconsin. On April 16, 2025, a group of Wisconsin legislators announced their proposal to enshrine a right to clean water, air, and soil in the Wisconsin Constitution. In part, the proposed amendment reads: The people, including future generations, have the right to a clean, safe, and healthy natural environment, including clean

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Continue Reading Green Amendments in Practice: What Wisconsin Can Learn from Other States

Water droplets with PFAS text -- Forever chemical water contamination concept
Water droplets with PFAS text -- Forever chemical water contamination concept

Wisconsin Supreme Court holds that DNR has authority to address PFAS contamination without first promulgating rules identifying each contaminant as a “hazardous substance”
Introduction
On June 24, 2025, the Wisconsin Supreme Court issued a landmark environmental decision in Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce, Inc. v. DNR. The Court concluded that the Department of Natural Resources (“DNR”) has the authority to require the cleanup of “emerging contaminants,” like PFAS, without first promulgating rules identifying each substance qualifying as a “hazardous substance”…
Continue Reading DNR Authorized to Address PFAS Contamination without First Identifying ‘Hazardous Substances’ per Wisconsin Supreme Court

The ever-changing landscape of state government requires businesses across all industries to stay informed on the happenings in Madison. Welcome to the July issue of the Capitol Connection.

 In this issue:

  • Governor Tony Evers Signs 2025–2027 Wisconsin Biennial Budget into Law
  • K-12 Education and Child Care
  • UW System and Technical Colleges
  • Tax Relief for Household Affordability
  • Investments in Tourism Industry
  • Health care and Public Health
  • Transportation and Infrastructure Development
  • Support for Veterans and Military Families
  • Agriculture, Conservation, and Clean

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Continue Reading Capitol Connection, July 2025

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are a class of thousands of human-made chemicals used across a number of industries. Their durability makes them ideal for various uses like stain protection in textiles, machine lubricants, and fire suppression. That same durability has led to their more common name, forever chemicals, as they do not break down easily in the environment and can persist in the human body for long periods. PFAS have been associated with an increased risk of certain…
Continue Reading The Shifting Nature of the PFAS Regulatory Landscape

Real estate developers face a complex, evolving landscape for wetland permitting in Florida in light of the loss of the state’s permitting authority, combined with recent federal executive actions and changes to Section 404 of the Clean Water Act (the “CWA”). These state and federal developments create challenges for developers seeking to build hospitals, schools or housing in or near wetlands in Florida.
Context and Legal Background
Section 404 of the CWA regulates the discharge of dredged or fill…
Continue Reading Developers Beware: How the Evolving Battle Over Wetland Permitting Is Impacting Florida Real Estate Projects

Initiatives to Combat PFAS Announced After Environmental Regulation Rollbacks
The second Trump term has already been marked by significant environmental deregulation, including targeting major climate change, energy efficiency, environmental justice, and air pollution policies established over the decades since the first wave of environmental regulatory schemes began in the 1970s.[1] These rollbacks have been compounded by reductions in the EPA workforce and budget, including the agency’s scientific research division.[2] The reduction of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS),…
Continue Reading After Wave of Environmental Regulation Rollbacks, Trump Administration Announces PFAS-Combatting Initiatives

When I started law school, I wasn’t really sure what exactly I wanted to practice. To be honest, I wasn’t even sure at the time if I liked law. I was unsure of myself, I felt out of place in the law school because my classmates seemed to know exactly what they wanted to do and where they wanted to go.

Jonathan Fuller

Jonathan Fuller, U.W. Law School Clas​​s of 2025, has interned at the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources

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Continue Reading Best Job in the World: A 3L’s Opinion on the Challenges and Thrills of Environmental Law

On his first day in office, Jan. 20, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order that was a shot across the bow to American wind energy production.

The executive order includes the following directives:

  • withdrawal from disposition all areas within the Offshore Continental Shelf (OCS) for wind energy leasing;
  • a halt in consideration of any area in the OCS for new or renewed wind energy leasing;
  • a temporary halt and immediate review of federal wind leasing and permitting practices;

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Continue Reading Wisconsin’s Wind Energy Future Uncertain After Executive Order

On Jan. 16, 2025, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reclassified ​several counties in southeastern Wisconsin from moderate to serious nonattainment for the 2015 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS).1 Ozone pollution is an ongoing challenge for the Greater Milwaukee area that affects the environment, the region’s economy, and the public health of approximately one-third of Wisconsin’s population that calls the area home.

Michael Moran headshot
Michael Moran, Michigan State 2020, is a staff attorney with the Wisconsin Department of

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Continue Reading Clearing the Air about Serious Ozone Nonattainment in Southeastern Wisconsin

On Oct. 8 2024, the Biden administration issued its long-awaited final rule, the “Lead and Copper Rule Improvements” (LCRI), requiring drinking water systems across the country identify and replace all lead water pipes within a 10-year period. The LCRI includes requirements for more rigorous testing of drinking water for lead levels, lower thresholds requiring communities to take action to protect residents from lead exposure, and more consistent communication with communities regarding the schedules for pipe replacement and…
Continue Reading EPA Improved Lead Rule to Facilitate Lead Pipes Replacement in the U.S.

The ever-changing landscape of state government requires businesses across all industries to stay informed on the happenings in Madison. Welcome to the November 2024 issue of the Capitol Connection.

In this issue:

Election 2024: State Legislature

After the implementation of new legislative maps, months of campaigning, heated rhetoric, a barrage of unsolicited text messages, and lots of junk mail, the 2024 election has concluded.

After the votes were tallied:

  • Democrats gained 10 seats in the Wisconsin Assembly
  • Republicans maintain

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Continue Reading Capitol Connection, November 2024

close-up view of water flowing from tap into glass

On October 8, the Biden Administration issued its long-awaited final rule, the “Lead and Copper Rule Improvements” (the “LCRI”), requiring drinking water systems across the country identify and replace all lead water pipes within a 10-year period.[1] The LCRI also includes requirements for more rigorous testing of drinking water for lead levels, lower thresholds requiring communities to take action to protect residents from lead exposure, and more consistent communication with communities regarding the schedules for pipe replacement and…
Continue Reading EPA Issues Final Lead & Copper Rule Improvements with $2.6 Billion Allocated to Support Replacement of All Lead Drinking Water Pipes in the US

Attorney Mederson to present on climate change during State Bar’s Annual Environmental Law Update
Attorney Jessica C. Mederson will present with a panel of other experts during the State Bar of Wisconsin’s 36th Annual Environmental Law Update on Thursday, September 12, 2024. Jessica and the other panelists’ portion of the Environmental Law Update promises to be “a lively panel discussion about climate change [where the audience will] receive guidance on ethical questions with a unique environmental law perspective.” Register…
Continue Reading Attorney Jessica Mederson Presents at State Bar of Wisconsin’s 2024 Environmental Law Update

Wisconsin has over 15,000 lakes, and summer often is filled with swimming, boating, and enjoying the state’s waterways. It is also a time where the importance of understanding riparian rights, property rights associated with Wisconsin’s lakes, rivers, and waterways, is heightened. Disputes between riparian owners (lake and river property owners) have become increasingly common as new construction, crowded shorelines, and changes in watercraft have led to increased contact and increased conflict. The latest iteration of this conflict centers around…
Continue Reading Trends in Riparian Rights: Update

close-up view of water flowing from tap into glass

Law Clerk Klara A. Henry assisted in the drafting of this blog post.

On April 10, 2024, the EPA issued a highly anticipated final rule establishing legally enforceable limits for five types of PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, often called “forever chemicals”). The rule sets individual limits for these five forms of PFAS, as well as limits on two or more of the substances mixed together. The larger class of PFAS substances consists of almost 15,000 synthetic chemicals, many…
Continue Reading EPA Finalizes First-Ever National Drinking Water Standard for PFAS

As of February 13, 2024, the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) E1527–21 “Standard Practice for Environmental Site Assessments: Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Process” is now required when Phase I Environmental Site Assessments (ESAs) are conducted by environmental consultants to qualify for the innocent landowner defense, or the bona fide prospective purchaser or contiguous property owner liability protections, under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) (see: 42 U.S.C. 9601 et seq.).

The goal of…
Continue Reading Use of the ASTM E1527-21 Phase I Environmental Site Assessment Standard Practice is Now Required to Meet CERCLA Liability Protections