ELI Member Breaking News Event
“You don’t make the timeline. The virus makes the timeline.” – Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases
With news reports changing day by day and government messages coming from city, state, regional, and federal officials, it can prove immensely challenging for businesses and leaders across a variety of sectors to understand the latest recommendations and guidelines pertaining to risk management for COVID-19. In addition to the continually-evolving advisories, over 300,000,000 people in 41 states, the District of Columbia, and on tribal lands are under orders from their governments to shelter-in-place or stay-at-home, and business have been ordered to close in locations across the country unless exempted as essential. Meanwhile, key questions regarding environmental compliance are surrounding companies and firms across a variety of sectors.
What are the prevailing recommendations and orders? Can businesses remain open and require workers to report for duty for the purpose of maintaining compliance with an environmental regulation, permit, or other requirement? How much does the definition of what is an essential business or an essential activity vary from one jurisdiction to the next? What does environmental compliance look like in this changing regulatory landscape? How can self-efficacy be promoted amongst business leaders who are currently facing difficult decisions about how to best protect employee health, maintain environmental compliance, and reduce disruptions, all while responding appropriately to the pandemic? What is the overarching advice of public health professionals, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention? Our panelists explored these questions and provided guidance on how various orders impact an entity’s ability to comply with environmental laws, including how to determine whether a company or its employees are categorized as essential.
Panelists:
Kevin S. Minoli, Partner, Alston & Bird LLP, Moderator
Maureen F. Gorsen, Partner, Alston & Bird LLP
Justine Parker, Managing Health Scientist, Cardno ChemRisk
Rosemarie Kelley, Director, Office of Civil Enforcement, Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Alexander Sundermann, Senior Associate Health Scientist, Cardno ChemRisk
Materials:
There were no speaker materials for this event..
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