The Apolitical Law School Clinic, Essay Example

Under the Clean Water Act, the Office of Water (OW) aims to ensure that “drinking water is safe, and restores and maintains oceans, watersheds, and their aquatic ecosystems to protect human health, support economic and recreational activities, and provide healthy habitat for fish, plants, and wildlife”. It is important to note that the SafePak is considered to be biodegradable and should therefore not contaminate the drinking water either near the production not been certified by filing for trademark protection in the state or federal arena. Overall, filing to this legal protection is expected to reduce claims that the SafePak is not biodegradable.            Furthermore, it would be beneficial to counteract the concerns of these environmentalists group by providing them with a more comprehensive understanding of data related to the impact of this product on the environment. Since our company is dedicated to producing environmentally friendly products, it would be beneficial for us to affirm this mission. A quick way that this could be accomplished would be by conducting a brief experiment to demonstrate the speed at which the product degrades in different environmental conditions to provide environmentalist groups with an understanding of the product’s capabilities. Ultimately, this will affirm that there is not a violation of the Clean Water Act in place because there is no evidence related to the harmful contamination of waterways. To further this evidence, a precise determination of the chemical residues in water could be determined. These residues could then be compared to the presence of chemicals in waterways near the production site in addition to areas of concern to show that the SafePak is not responsible for causing contamination.

This aspect of the decision does not need to be referred to the company’s outside counsel, as it can be handled internally in an efficient manner. Ultimately, the information generated from this reporting could be used to publish press releases and reaffirm the company’s mission to provide environmentally safe products. The research into this issue would then be able to serve a dual purpose; not only would it help confirm the ecofriendly nature of the company’s products, it would also allow us to create a profitable marketing campaign that will help us spread our mission.

The Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965, “was the first federal law that required environmentally sound methods for disposal of household, municipal, commercial, and industrial waste (EPA, n.d.)”. Currently, there is no evidence that the company is not disposing of its waste materials in an environmentally conscious manner. In addition, it is important to consider that these SafePak was designed in a manner to ensure that this federal requirement would not be applicable to the company’s current operations (Babich, 2005). The SafePak is biodegradable itself and it is also used to transport biodegradable materials. Therefore, it is important to consider that the Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965 is not applicable in this situation. The environmental activists need to be made aware of this discrepancy and gain a better understanding of company practices. Overall, each aspect of our company’s operations are environmentally friendly, from the recycling policies established in the office and the manufacturing process related to the SafePak. In order to alleviate public concerns, it would be beneficial to compile a report of company practices to reestablish their faith in our operations. This report should be made available online and sent directly to the organization to allow them to gain a more comprehensive understanding of our company’s impact on the environment. This information should be provided to fruit producers as well so that they are made aware of the facts,

It is important for our company to continue to be perceived as one with an environmentally conscious mission, as this is the basis for our products. Therefore, it would be beneficial to become involved in more publically relevant environmental campaigns in order to earn this trust in our business. In order to do so, we could begin reaching out to only partner organizations that produce organically grown produce. Furthermore, we can begin initiatives in order to fundraise money to support clean energy and other important environmental causes. These efforts can be supported by gaining a greater understanding of the concerns of fruit growers that would be interested in purchasing this product and matching their goals up with our incentives and programs. Ultimately, if the concerns of the clients are put ahead of the concerns of the environmentalists, it is not expected that this bad press will heavily impact business. However, it is important to focus on both aspects of this problem in order to ensure that the image of the company remains protected. Going forward, it is important to ensure that the proper legal protections are put in place and to establish company image in a manner that prevents it from being marred in these regards. It is possible that the company does not need to be concerned with these groups, but action should be taken in order to mitigate risk and prevent against future problems.

References

Babich A. (2005). The Apolitical Law School Clinic. Clinical L. Rev., 11: 447.

EPA. (n.d.). What is the Solid Waste Disposal Act of 1965? Retrieved from http://waste.supportportal.com/link/portal/23002/23023/Article/23068/What-is-the-Solid-  Waste-Disposal-Act-of-1965

EPA. (n.d.). Summary of the Clean Water Act. Retrieved from http://www2.epa.gov/laws-regulations/summary-clean-water-act