Environmental issues are a growing concern. Environmental law is a complex and constantly evolving grouping of laws and regulations designed to balance the rights and interests of private property owners with the environmental concerns of the public. Municipal government is often thrust into the center of this balance struggle to protect its natural resources including parks, floodplains, streams, wetlands, riparian buffers, open space, and water supply.
The Municipal Law Team at High Swartz is at the forefront of environmental issues facing Pennsylvania municipalities and provides preemptive practical and technical legal advice in drafting legislation and regulations and guiding compliance with environmental laws that impact local governments. The Municipal Law Team at High Swartz also is often called upon to serve as special counsel to represent municipalities in complex litigation involving clean water, clean air, pipeline siting and construction, floodplain management, stormwater management and controversial land uses.
High Swartz takes a collaborative approach when facing these issues and works closely with its Environmental Law Group. Together they are a formidable team of lawyers who have an intimate working knowledge of federal and state laws governing clean air, clean water, natural resource management, floodplain regulation, sewage facilities planning, storm water management, municipal waste management, recycling, brownfields and contaminated sites.
This specialized team at High Swartz has ongoing relationships with the United States Environmental Protection Agency, the Department of Conservation of Natural Resources, and the Department of Environmental Protection to assist the municipalities it represents maintain compliance, and partners with these agencies in land planning, preservation of open space, greenways and trails, floodplain management, recycling, and innovative stormwater management solutions.
The knowledge base and expertise of the Municipal Law Team coupled with our collaborative approach results in innovative solutions, balancing private property rights, municipal interests, and the interest of the general public in addressing environmental issues.