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Atlantic States Legal Foundation; Records apap311 This finding aid was produced using ArchivesSpace on March 01, 2021. M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections & Archives Atlantic States Legal Foundation; Records apap311 Table of Contents Summary Information .................................................................................................................................... 3 Biographical Sketch ....................................................................................................................................... 3 Scope and Contents ........................................................................................................................................ 4 Arrangement of the Collection ...................................................................................................................... 5 Administrative Information ............................................................................................................................ 5 Controlled Access Headings .......................................................................................................................... 6 Collection Inventory ....................................................................................................................................... 7 Projects ......................................................................................................................................................... 7 Midwest ..................................................................................................................................................... 7 Northeast ................................................................................................................................................. 73 Southeast ............................................................................................................................................... 144 Southwest .............................................................................................................................................. 153 West ....................................................................................................................................................... 161 U.S. Territories ..................................................................................................................................... 173 Publications .............................................................................................................................................. 178 Serials .................................................................................................................................................... 178 New York Publications ......................................................................................................................... 192 New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Publications ........................................ 204 General Publications ............................................................................................................................. 221 Subject Files ............................................................................................................................................ 240 Affiliate Associations .............................................................................................................................. 259 - Page 2 - Atlantic States Legal Foundation; Records apap311 Summary Information Repository: M.E. Grenander Department of Special Collections & Archives Title: Atlantic States Legal Foundation Records ID: apap311 Date [inclusive]: 1966-2009 Physical Description: 179.74 cubic ft. Physical Location: The materials are located onsite in the department. Language of the English . Material: Abstract: The Atlantic States Legal Foundation Records document the environmental not-for-profit organization's pollution reduction and environmental remediation projects and cases throughout the United States and territories. Preferred Citation Preferred citation for this material is as follows: Identification of specific item, series, box, folder, Atlantic States Legal Foundation 1966-2009 (APAP-311). M. E. Grenander Department of Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University at Albany, State University of New York (hereafter referred to as the Atlantic States Legal Foundation Records). ^ Return to Table of Contents Biographical Sketch Atlantic States Legal Foundation, Inc. (ASLF) is a not-for-profit organization founded in 1982, with headquarters in Syracuse, New York. Since its earliest years, Samuel Sage has worked with ASLF, actively promoting numerous environmental projects and serving as president. ASLF's mission is to provide affordable technical, legal and organizational services to a variety of individuals, community groups, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), local governments and others to protect and remediate threats to the natural and human environment. - Page 3- Atlantic States Legal Foundation; Records apap311 In the 1980s and 1990s ASLF used the legal frame work of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, known as the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the Emergency Planning and Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) to ensure industrial pollution was in compliance with permits issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The CWA is a federal law passed in 1976, which set water pollution standards to levels safe for human recreation. The EPCRA, passed in 1986, enabled private citizens and NGOs to request federal and state agencies documents such as, Material Safety Data Sheets, Toxic Release Inventories, SARA Title III Reports, Discharge Permits and Discharge Monitoring Reports (DMR) for individual companies. Often, the copying fees for these reports were waived for ASLF because it is a not-for-profit organization. ASLF used these reports to identify pollution discharge violations throughout the United States and U.S. Territories. After violations were identified, a sixty day notice of the intent to sue would be sent to the permit violating company. Often agreement settlements were negotiated before reaching court. The cases that did reach the courts were citizen suits and ASLF, as an organization, often needed an individual, affiliated with ASLF, in the affected area who could demonstrate harm. These individuals could provide standing for the case and were often members of ASLF or of a community group working with ASLF. On November 28, 1990 ASLF was the first ever to settle an EPCRA citizen suit. ASLF became the leading NGO utilizing the citizen suit provision of the Clean Water Act to enforce disclosure and compliance with pollution permits. ASLF worked with local individuals and community groups, such as the Sierra Club and Hudson River Sloop Clearwater, to discover and bring legal claim against polluters. In addition to working with local groups, ASLF often worked through local attorneys in distant states, to manage the handling of a case. In 1998 the effectiveness of citizen suits was curtailed due to a U.S. Supreme Court decision. However, ASLF's efforts forced many industries and companies to be accountable to their local communities. ^ Return to Table of Contents Scope and Contents The collection contains materials relating to the projects and cases pursued by ASLF, ASLF's collection of published environmental reports and newsletters, and subject files. ASLF activities encompassed almost every U.S. state and a few U.S. territories. The projects and cases are arranged by geographic regions, state, and finally alphabetically by the company or organization. The publications are arranged alphabetically, with separation between serial publications, New York publications, New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) publications, and other publications. The collection contains materials from the 1960s to 2000s. However the bulk of the projects were pursued in the 1980s and 1990s, items which pre- or post-date this range are often research material, DMRs or compliance reports required by consent decrees. The collection consists of correspondence, compliance reports, discharge monitoring reports (DMR), court documents, architectural drawings, laboratory analyses, notes, news clippings, National Discharge Elimination Permit System (NPDES) permits, photographs, quarterly non-compliance reports (QNCR), - Page 4- Atlantic States Legal Foundation; Records apap311 remediation programs, standing, subject files, workshops and environmental newsletters, studies and research reports. ^ Return to Table of Contents Arrangement of the Collection The collection is organized into the following series: 1 Series 1 - Projects, 1967-2009, Undated 2 Subseries 1: Midwest, 1967-2009, Undated 3 Subseries 2: Northeast, 1970-2009, Undated 4 Subseries 3: Southeast, 1977-1997, Undated 5 Subseries 4: Southwest, 1970-1998, Undated 6 Subseries 5: West, 1980-1999, Undated 7 Subseries 6: U.S. Territories, 1973-2004, Undated 8 Series 2 - Publications, 1966-2009, Undated 9 Subseries 1: Serials, 1971-2009 10 Subseries 2: New York Publications, 1966-2007, Undated 11 Subseries 3: New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Publications, 1966-2002, Undated 12 Subseries 4: General Publications, ca. 1966-2009, Undated 13 Series 3 - Subject Files, 1968-2004, Undated 14 Series 4 - Affiliate Associations, 1972-1996 ^ Return to Table of Contents Administrative Information Publication Statement M.E. Grenander