Sustainability Law Blog

BPA has requested $2 million in grants from the U.S. Department of Energy to study use of pumped storage as a tool in balancing uneven power supplies from wind energy. Pump storage projects generally involve the use of wind power to pump water uphill, which is stored until energy demand increases, at which time the water is released downhill to drive energy-generating turbines. Energy Secretary Steven Chu has often promoted pump storage as a promising option for evening out wind energy output, and the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission recently approved a pump storage project on the Little Potlatch Creek in Idaho. Numerous companies are investigating other potential pump storage project sites in Oregon and Washington, including Symbiotics, a Utah-based hydropower developer that also seeks to retrofit existing dams that currently do not have hydroelectric capabilities.

Post authored by David Petersen, partner practicing in the Sustainability and Real Estate and Land Use Groups.

Following the lead of San Francisco, Portland launched a new website last week that will allow people to zoom in on a satellite image of any rooftop in the city to determine its suitability for solar panels. The site also provides information on carbon and energy cost savings, tax credits, and other incentives for solar development. The City hopes the Oregon Clean Energy Map will boost the City's profile as part of the growing Oregon solar energy industry sector. The City developed the site through a $200,000 cash grant from the U. S. Department of Energy's Solar America Cities program.

Post authored by David Petersen, partner practicing in the Sustainability and Real Estate and Land Use Groups.

On May 20, David Petersen and I participated on behalf of Tonkon Torp's Sustainability Law Practice in the West Linn-Wilsonville School District's Sustainability Showcase. While perusing the displays put up by the various businesses and local government agencies, I was able to pick up some useful information about water-wise gardening in the Pacific Northwest, including a great guide created by horticulture and conservation experts to assist the general gardener in making informed decisions about how to use water more efficiently in their landscapes. Following are some tips from this guide that I find very useful:

• The fact that most automatic irrigation timers are set to go off in the early mornings puts a great strain on water utilities, which must often super-size their facilities to meet early-morning water demand. A better time period for setting irrigation timers is during off-hours, i.e., between 11 pm and 5 am.

• A yard has numerous microclimates formed or affected by influences such as the house, balconies, rooftops, fences, walls, large rocks or trees, and paved surfaces. You can create a healthier landscape by selecting plants most suited to a particular microclimate.

• Only plant (or allow to remain, as the case may be) turf areas where grass is practical and functional. Good alternatives to grass are ground covers (particularly good for steep slopes where grass is hard to maintain and foot traffic is infrequent) and hardscape features such as pathways or patios.

• Only use organic mulch to cover the soil in your garden. Plastic mulches tend to increase soil temperatures and do not stimulate the activity of beneficial soil organisms that improve soil structure and biology.

• Last and certainly not least, water wisely: (i) water based on soil conditions and plant needs; (ii) water deeply but infrequently; (iii) use drip hoses instead of sprinklers; and (iv) water in accordance with the weather.

There are some beautiful water-efficient Demonstration Gardens in the Willamette Valley if you'd like to see what a water-wise garden looks like on the ground, including a 7,000 sq. ft. garden at Clackamas Community College and a 1.3 acre garden at the Tualatin Valley Water District.

Happy water wise gardening!

Post authored by Jeanette Schuster, attorney practicing in the Sustainability and Real Estate and Land Use Groups.

Parties engaged in real property transactions, mergers and acquisitions, and real property development should be aware that in March 2008, ASTM International (originally known as the American Society for Testing and Materials) released a standard, numbered E-2600-08, that defines good commercial and customary practice in the US for conducting a vapor intrusion assessment ("VIA") on a parcel of property involved in a real estate transaction. The purpose of a VIA is to determine whether subsurface chemicals may be migrating as vapors from contaminated soil or groundwater on the property (or within close proximity to the property) into existing or planned structures on the property. While neither the US Environmental Protection Agency nor the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality currently requires the implementation of VIAs as an element of Phase I environmental site assessments ("ESAs"), lenders will likely require them in the future to eliminate the possibility of an unacceptable risk to humans at the property.

ESAs are "above-ground" property inspections that include a review of the property's historical use, ownership and aerial photographs, a site visit, and interviews of owners and local government officials, but do not involve testing the soil or groundwater. They are standard practice in real estate transactions because they allow purchasers of real property (assuming the ESAs are performed correctly) to claim one of the three protections, so called "innocent purchaser" defenses, available against potential CERCLA (or "Superfund") claims. Consequently, if VIAs are going to become a required component of Phase I ESAs, environmental due diligence in real estate transactions will likely become more costly and time-intensive.

Post authored by Jeanette Schuster, attorney practicing in the Sustainability and Real Estate and Land Use Groups.