So What Is All This Talk about WOTUS?

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There has been a lot of talk lately about WOTUS (or “Waters of the United States”).  This post gives a brief overview about what the heck is going on… In way of background, the United States government introduced the Clean Water Act (CWA) in 1972 in order to “restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation’s …

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Laws Regulating Solid & Hazardous Waste in New York

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The Federal Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (“RCRA”) was enacted in 1976 to protect citizens from hazardous waste by controlling the manner in which waste is disposed. The New York Solid and Hazardous Waste Management Law is the state counterpart to the RCRA, designed to safeguard the public while encouraging the conservation of energy and natural resources. Both state and …

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Laws Regulating Water in New York Agriculture

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The Federal Clean Water Act (“CWA”) was enacted in 1972 with the goal of protecting the country’s waterways from pollution.  The Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) is charged with enforcing the CWA at the federal level.  The New York Department of Environmental Conservation (“DEC”) works at the state level to protect New York’s water resources.  While states must adhere to the …

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Overview of the Environmental Protection Agency

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I’m currently conducting a blog series where each week I give a brief overview of the responsibilities of a government agency regulating our food and agriculture system.  I think it’s a helpful reminder for everyone on just how complex our regulatory system really is.  It’s a game of Who’s Who for government players in the U.S. food and agriculture economy. …

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Federal Government Agencies Responsible for Food

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Recently, I have been reading through Neal Fortin’s book titled “Food Regulation: Law, Science, Policy & Practice”.   Fortin has a helpful chart illustrating the federal government agencies that regulate food.  The federal agencies and responsibilities are as follows: Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”): drinking water, pesticide residues Food and Drug Administration (“FDA”): food (excluding meat and poultry), drugs (including both …

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Food Law Webinar on Genetically Engineered Animals

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Food Seminars International (“FSI”) will be having a 90 min. food law webinar on September 5, 2012 at 2pm ET on Genetically Engineered (“GE”) Animals. Dr. Alison L. Van Eenennaam from UC Davis will be presenting on the following issues: (1) Current status of research and development in GE animals; (2)  Regulation of GE animals in the United States (including …

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Harvard’s Food Law & Policy Career Guide

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Big thanks to Jean Terranova (@JeanTerranova for you Twitter folks) for sending me the Food Law and Policy Career Guide by the Harvard Food Law & Policy Clinic and Harvard Food Law Society.  I think it’s an excellent resource for folks interested in a career in food & agriculture law. The guide briefly notes areas of concentration including agriculture, biotechnology/GMOs, …

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Save the Date: Local Food Law Seminar at Pace Law School on October 29th

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I’m excited to announce that I will be a faculty member for a Continuing Legal Education (“CLE”) seminar at Pace University, School of Law (my alum) on Monday October 29th, 2012 from 6:00 to 8:30pm titled “Survey of Local Food.”  Just as the title indicates, the speakers will be presenting on a myriad of practice areas affecting the local food …

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Upcoming CLE on “Counseling the Local Food Movement”

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As I noted in this blog, I’m very excited to announce that the American Bar Association’s (“ABA”) General Practice, Solo and Small Firm Division’s Agriculture Law Committee will be hosting a CLE webinar on Thursday, May 10, 2012 titled “Counseling the Local Food Movement:  What a Practitioner Should Know.”  This is a very substantive CLE that will be two hours. …

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ABA Agriculture Law Subcommittees

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As I noted in this previous post, I am the new Chair of the American Bar Association (“ABA”), General Practice, Solo and Small Firm’s Division, Agriculture Law Committee.  You can join the Committee and the Discussion List here.  I have restructured the subcommittees as follows: 1. Ag ADR: mediation, arbitration 2. Ag Estate/Succession Planning, Family Law, and Taxation: estate planning,succession …

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New Chair of the ABA GP Solo Agriculture Law Committe

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I have been appointed the new chair of the American Bar Association (“ABA”) General Practice, Solo & Small Firm Division‘s Agriculture Law Committee (whew that’s a mouthful- say that three times really fast).  The Committee has been fairly inactive over the last few years but I hope to change that. If you are a food/agriculture attorney or law student, please …

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Completed the Beef Quality Assurance Producer Certification Manual

Rincker LawAgriculture Production, Food & Ag Law, Food & Ag Organizations 1 Comment

As I noted in this blog a few months ago, I am currently completing the Beef Quality Assurance (“BQA”) training through the New York Beef Industry Council, Inc. Last weekend, I have reviewed the Producer Certification Manual for the Mid-Atlantic region (which includes Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, Maine, New Jersey and Vermont).  After reviewing the materials, I …

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