Thierry Montoya speaks with former Santa Cruz County Supervisor Zach Friend about his experiences in local government, as well as the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) and how it can be used to impede necessary development. They also analyze the potential impact of recent state-level reforms. Zach talks about the challenge of leading a community through major environmental disasters, including infrastructure damage, long-term recovery, and the ongoing insurance crisis. Thierry and Zach then discuss the need for proactive AI governance in the public sector. 

Learn more about Zach Friend at https://www.santacruzworks.org/

Watch Zach's TedX Talk, "Big Data's Coming To Your Town": https://youtu.be/VVQdehQzIOU?si=rSEXzSLsRqcPHa2N 

Want to get in touch with us? Contact Thierry at [email protected] and visit FrostBrownTodd online at https://www.frostbrowntodd.com.

Thierry and Orell discuss how environmentally impacted properties are appraised.

Time stamps:

00:07:00 — Define an environmentally impacted property

00:11:37 — Examples of contaminated properties

00:17:23 — How does a site's environmental impact affect its appeal over time?

00:20:56 — Challenges of appraising contaminated properties

00:27:25 — Appraisal methods

00:35:14 — Challenges of appraising contaminated properties

00:39:53 — How do you deal with situations where remediation is underway or future environmental outcomes are uncertain?

00:49:19 — What is your most interesting case study in environmentally impacted property

00:57:54 — How do state/local regulations layer onto federal regulations?

01:09:29 — Industry standards

01:16:36 — How is technology transforming how we assess environmental risk?

01:22:09 — How might the new Trump Administration affect things?

01:28:38 — How does the role of the appraiser evolve in response to climate change?

01:32:41 — Final thoughts

Want to get in touch with us? Contact Thierry at [email protected] and visit FrostBrownTodd online at https://www.frostbrowntodd.com.

Thierry speaks with mediator Gideon Kracov of ADR Services, Inc. about mediation's role in environmental policy, as well as strategies and approaches to mediation in general.

Watch this episode in full: https://vimeo.com/982607532/aa10d33650?share=copy

Want to get in touch with us? Contact Thierry at [email protected] and visit FrostBrownTodd online at https://www.frostbrowntodd.com.

Thierry speaks with Matt Winefield of Winefield & Associates and the Brownfield Braintrust Podcast about the uncertain future of brownfield redevelopment in California.

Watch this episode in full: https://vimeo.com/924769056/15b4489c7f?share=copy 

Want to get in touch with us? Contact Thierry at [email protected] and visit FrostBrownTodd online at https://www.frostbrowntodd.com.

The content of this episode reflects the views and opinions of Thierry Montoya and his guests, and does not constitute legal advice. 

Thierry speaks with attorney and author Barry Ross about his book Are You the King or Queen of Your Castle? Not If You Live in a Homeowner's Association (available for purchase on Amazon: https://amzn.to/47Ru3Ra) and the complex relationships between homeowners and homeowners associations.

Watch this episode in full: https://vimeo.com/894184959

Want to get in touch with us? Contact Thierry at [email protected] and visit FrostBrownTodd online at https://www.frostbrowntodd.com.

The content of this episode reflects the views and opinions of Thierry Montoya and his guests, and does not constitute legal advice. 

Tom Harder joins the show to help Thierry cover the ins-and-outs of the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. 

Learn more about Tom at https://thomashardercompany.com/

Want to watch this episode? Catch it on Vimeo here: https://vimeo.com/873704083?share=copy 

Want to get in touch with the show? Contact Thierry Montoya at [email protected]

Attorney Tina Wallis joins the show to help Thierry cover the ins-and-outs of the California Environmental Quality Act. 

Learn more about Tina at https://twallislaw.com/

Want to get in touch with the show? Contact Thierry Montoya at [email protected]

On September 7, 2022, the California State Water Control Boards issued requirements for testing microplastics in drinking water, becoming the first government in the world to establish health-based guidelines for acceptable levels of microplastics in drinking water.

Jon Rohrer is the principal Hydrogeologist at Roux, providing environmental management and consulting. He joins the show to explain the new regulations and their implications for the regulated. 

Learn more about Jon and Roux at https://www.rouxinc.com/leadership/jon-rohrer-p-g-c-hg/

And connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/rohrerj/ 

Want to get in touch with the show? Contact Thierry Montoya at [email protected] 

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has the authority under the Clean Water Act to regulate “waters of the United States.” But what exactly do we mean by “waters of the United States”? It’s a more complicated question than it might seem. In this episode of Essential Environmental, attorney Thierry Montoya dives into the question by covering the ongoing Supreme Court case of Sackett v. EPA, which concerns the EPA’s ability to regulate development on wetlands, as well as the EPA’s revised definition of waters of the United States, set to take effect on March 20, 2023. 

Want to get in touch with us? Contact Thierry at [email protected] and visit FrostBrownTodd online at https://www.frostbrowntodd.com.

The content of this episode reflects the views and opinions of Thierry Montoya and does not constitute legal advice. 

Time stamps:

02:01 - EPA's enforcement authority under Clean Water Act's definition of "waters of the United States" might be about to change

05:00 - Sackett v. EPA, explained

15:05 - SCOTUS addressed "waters of the United States" in three prior cases

22:20 - EPA's new rule defining "Waters of the United States" will take effect on March 20, 2023

25:07 - What does all of this mean for landowners and developers?

Attorney Thierry Montoya explains what citizen standing means, and how to challenge it in environmental cases. Want to get in touch with us? Contact Thierry at [email protected] and visit AlvaradoSmith online at https://www.alvaradosmith.com. 

The content of this episode reflects the views and opinions of Thierry Montoya and do not constitute legal advice. 

Time stamps:

02:30 - What does legal standing mean?

03:20 - The Lujan decision creates a 3-part test to determine standing 

04:50 - The Spokeo requirement

10:00 - Center for Biological Diversity v. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill 

12:25 - Prairie Rivers Network v. Dynegy Midwest Generation, LLC

13:50 - Takeaways