Expertise

Jed has assisted clients with a variety of environmental issues including waste, water, soil, and air.  Jed's specialty expertise is air quality and climate change.  Jed has experience in various facets of environmental law including compliance counseling, permitting, enforcement, due diligence, contracts, litigation support, and policy development.

Experience

Jed has assisted clients on a variety of environmental matters including the following:

• Defended energy client in a TCEQ enforcement matter--successfully pursuing a TCEQ air quality rule change for stationary engines that obviated the enforcement matter and saved the client over $500,000 in needless facility changes.
• Worked with major oil and gas, chemical, electric generation, and manufacturing companies on air quality compliance, auditing, permitting, emissions trading, and enforcement matters.  Air quality experience includes esssentially all Texas and federal air programs (ex. NSR/PSD, MACT, NSPS, Title V, and Title IV).
• Assisted clients in assessing and preparing strategies to address statutory and regulatory developments on climate change—including national trade associations in Washington, DC.
• Assessed legal strategies for challenging EPA’s statutory and constitutional authority to create monitoring requirements in the proposed greenhouse gas reporting rule on behalf of a large corporation.
• Counseled clients in obtaining environmental authorization for a variety of large projects including a $10 billion greenfield refinery, billion dollar marine projects in Houston and New York, and large-scale energy projects such as a 1500 MW coal-fired unit in New Mexico.
• Prepared RCRA analysis on definition of “solid waste” for chemical manufacturing client.
• Represented clients in the issues surrounding State Implementation Plan development and National Ambient Air Quality Standards setting.
• Initiated industry/environmental/government effort to transform the nation’s air quality planning process into a comprehensive multi-pollutant planning process that coordinates, prioritizes, and pursues control efforts in a more efficient manner considering various air quality/climate change goals (see www.sipreform.com).
• Assisted with environmental due diligence and deal work on numerous manufacturing, energy, and petrochemical matters including multi-million dollar projects.
• Represented both large and small manufacturing, petrochemical, and energy facilities on air quality enforcement matters in Texas.
• Prepared environmental audits for various clients in the petrochemical, manufacturing, and agricultural sectors.
• Assisted in the formation of a maritime workgroup in the Houston/Galveston area to analyze new air quality regulations that could impact the maritime industry and provided advocacy-related services.
• Represented three national trade associations in pursuing legislative and regulatory reforms on Clean Air Act matters in Washington, D.C.
• Conducted CAA training sessions for the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, New York District.
• Assisted Congressional leaders and a workgroup of local, state, and national trade associations with formulating legislative and regulatory revisions to the transportation/air quality planning process.
• Facilitated the creation of a non-profit organization in Texas to represent state mobility and development l interests.
• Intervened and negotiated in a lawsuit challenging the Houston/Galveston Ozone Attainment Plan on behalf of a coalition of local business organizations and a county.
• Assisted in the creation of a $135 million per year innovative incentive program called the Texas Emissions Reduction Plan to reduce emissions from mobile sources.
• Published articles on environmental issues including:  “Integrating Transportation Plans with Clean Air Goals”, “Congress Reforms CERCLA?Encourages Redevelopment of Contaminated Sites”, and “Legal Barricade Removed:  New Ozone and Particulate Matter Standards to Move Forward.”
• Guest speaker at numerous conferences and legislative hearings including the July 2008 Texas Senate Committee on Natural Resources hearing, the 2008 American Association of Port Authorities Climate Change Meeting, the 2007 American Institute of Chemical Engineers annual meeting, the 2006 Air & Waste Management Association Seminar, the 2004 American Association of Port Authorities Conference, the 2004 Western Dredging Association Conference, the 2004 Air & Waste Management Association’s Hot Air Topics Conference, and the 2004 American Association of State and Highway Transportation Officials-American Road and Transportation Builder’s Association-Associated General Contractors of America Environmental Seminar; “A National Dialogue on the Federal Clean Air Act:  Implications for Transportation Planning and Development” (sponsored by the American Road & Transportation Builders Association, the Association of Metropolitan Planning Organizations and the Federal Highway Administration) and the 2002 Texas Good Roads Association Annual Conference.         

Education