Producers advised to cooperate with environmental regulators

James T. Banks of the law firm Hogan and Hartson advised producers to become more environmentally aware in his address at the Animal Agriculture Environmental Sustainability Summit organized by WATT at the 2010 International Poultry Expo.
Banks is a specialist in environmental law and previously served as a regulator with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. He stressed stewardship, reputation and liability in his talk. His take-home message was that environmental compliance influences how customers, communities and employees perceive a company. He said that “protecting your companies’ reputation and image in building a relationship with regulators is critically important.” Obvious scofflaws attract the attention of regulators, and agencies may set out to make an example of companies that flaunt laws.
Banks recommends “self-disclosure” if inadvertent contravention of regulations takes place. With appropriate representation, transparency, disclosure and evidence of remedial action, it is possible to have penalties for violations reduced or waived.