Blog
Environmental Law 101: The Importance of Manufacturing to America.
I am biased. I am pro-jobs. I have also always thought that employment and environmental protection are not mutually exclusive. Maybe I am influenced by that fact that I come from northern Wisconsin which is naturally beautiful, albeit economically depressed. Maybe it is my economics background; or my career-long experience with environmental law and regulation. But the reason doesn’t make any difference because the answer is the same. We live in an ideologically simple society;...
Environmental Law 101: Jack Welch and the Art of Negotiation
On my website, I advocate a three step approach to successfully manage environmental issues. I advocate defining success ahead of negotiations; letting the facts determine strategy; and myopically focusing on outcome rather than on personalities or other distractions. As I prepared this post, the shutdown of the federal government had just ended and many commentators, such as Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric, argued that the stalemate in Washington is because our political leaders...
Environmental Law 101: Environmental Compliance–a Cost or an Opportunity?
American prides itself as being a country that conforms to the “rule of law.” Unfortunately, that term has become politicized and, as a result, trite. The “talking heads” in the media use the term to support whatever position they are advocating on any given day. My clients and I have always had to deal with reality and, as a consequence, the “rule of law” was actually a meaningful concept. Decades ago, when I was asked...