Contaminated Sediments

BW’s litigation and regulatory environmental teams have developed a comprehensive knowledge of the issues particular to aquatic and contaminated sediment sites through their representation of public and private port authorities and port-related entities. Because of our years of experience in this area, our lawyers have developed an unusual understanding of the specific impacts to sediment, a unique resource that involves its own very specific set of damages and quantification methods. Coordination with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, NOAA and other governmental and trustee agencies with regard to resource protection issues, combined with the development of chemical forensic models and risk assessment considerations, have allowed our attorneys to become authorities on the most recent sediment issues, including the critical and topical areas of remediation and dredging of contaminated sediments. Working closely with relevant state and federal agencies, our attorneys have been extensively involved in the development of sediment remediation plans, subsurface testing, the evaluation of vertical hazard distribution in sedimentary environments, the assessment of suitable remedial technologies, and hazard quotient issues for contaminants of concern.

Our Firm has significant experience in litigation associated with contaminated sediment cases and in working with natural resource damages experts to develop comprehensive evaluations of surface water and sediments, groundwater, soils, terrestrial and wetland plant communities, aquatic biota, wildlife and species of special significance. In recent cases, we have assessed damages to these resources with respect to impacts from DDT, DDD and DDE (“DDX compounds”), Lindane and BHC, chlorobenzenes, arsenic, dioxins, furans, PAHs and PCBs, among other constituents.

In the highly scientific and specialized area of natural resources litigation, it is especially important to have developed a cadre of credible and highly qualified experts with which to prove the impact to resources and to quantify damages. Our Firm has advanced the scientific aspects of our cases by directing and collaborating with the country’s foremost scientific natural resources experts to develop comprehensive evaluations of surface water and sediments, groundwater, soils, terrestrial and wetland plant communities, aquatic biota, wildlife and species of special significance. Our attorneys are skilled in the presentation of these types of scientific experts and in facilitating the scientific component of the case with the strategic use of such credentialed experts.