Disaster and Hazardous Materials Incident Response: A Lawyer's Guide - Thomas Shakman Burack

Disaster and Hazardous Materials Incident Response: A Lawyer's Guide Thomas Shakman Burack ISBN 9781639055692

Clients confronted with disasters of all kinds turn to their lawyers for immediate guidance and trusted counsel. Disaster and Hazardous Materials Incident Response: A Lawyer’s Guide adopts an “all-hazards” approach, delivering practical, actionable guidance for private practitioners, in-house counsel, consultants, and other professionals who assist organizations in preparing for, responding to, and recovering from disasters—including hazardous materials spills and releases.

The book opens with an overview of disaster management, outlining preparedness strategies organizations can implement to enhance resilience and improve their ability to manage future incidents. A dedicated section on release reporting emphasizes timely and accurate notification to government authorities as a critical and ongoing component of any responsible response. A detailed reporting and response timeline highlights key actions that should be taken within the first 24 hours following a hazardous materials release.

The guide also examines federal response and recovery mechanisms, including FEMA’s disaster declaration process and its most significant programs supporting communities and individuals. To illustrate governmental responses to environmental emergencies, the book explores the National Contingency Plan—the primary regulatory framework governing responses to releases of oil, hazardous substances, pollutants, or contaminants. This discussion demonstrates how an Emergency Support Function integrates within the broader National Response Framework and is implemented through the National Incident Management System.

Beyond procedural guidance, the book evaluates responses to transportation-related hazardous materials incidents involving railways, pipelines, maritime vessels, and trucking operations. It further addresses the recovery phase with a detailed analysis of liability and defenses arising from spills and releases. This includes an in-depth discussion of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA), as well as relevant common law principles, offering practitioners practical tools for assessing liability and available defenses across a wide range of disaster scenarios.

The guide concludes with an examination of the critical role insurance plays in environmental disasters and climate-related events, along with foundational guidance on preparing for and navigating government agency investigations. Together, these insights make this book an essential resource for legal professionals advising clients through the full lifecycle of disaster response and recovery.

Disaster and Hazardous Materials Incident Response: A Lawyer's Guide Thomas Shakman Burack ISBN 9781639055692, 978-1639055692 & 9781639055708

Authors
Thomas Shakman Burack
Kevin Reid Murray