Grever, Andreasen Address AWMA Conference

Partner Tom Grever (KC-Tort), chair of the Midwest Section of the Air & Waste Management Association (AWMA), organized this year's successful annual section conference, held January 31, 2007, in Kansas City.  The Kansas City conference brought together federal, state and local regulators; company managers; and attorneys from Missouri, Kansas, Iowa, and Arkansas.

Tom provided a welcoming address for the all-day, multi-track event and gave a litigation and regulatory update on New Source Review.  Of Counsel Jim Andreasen (KC-Tort) also presented at the conference as part of a panel discussion with Tyson Foods, Inc. and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency representatives on environmental developments affecting the agricultural industry.  Jim focused on the regulation of water pollution from concentrated animal feeding operations, based on an article he has written for an upcoming American Bar Association publication.

Panelists from Aquila, Burns and McDonnell, Black & Veatch, SCS Engineers, consulting firms, the Mid-America Regional Council, and environmental agencies addressed a wide array of topics from pollution regulation and litigation, vapor intrusion, environmental and safety management issues, Brownfields, and green initiatives to renewable energy, global warming, and spill-prevention control and countermeasure plans.  Mike Carter, manager of health, environment and safety for Bayer HealthCare's Animal Health Division, gave the keynote luncheon address on emergency preparedness and business continuity.

The AWMA is a nonprofit, nonpartisan professional organization that provides training, information and networking opportunities for more than 9,000 environmental professionals in 65 countries.