March 26, 2024 | Category:
News | Tags:
2008 Mitigation Rule,
Army Corps,
CWA,
EPA,
ERBA,
Sackett,
Water Law,
water rule,
Waters Of The U.S.,
Watershed Approach,
WOTUSERBA Applauds Corps Guidance on Watershed Approach and Mitigation Post-Sackett From ERBA: Last Friday, on World Water Day, Assistant Secretary for the Army Michael Connor issued guidance affirming the position of the 2008 Compensatory Mitigation Rule (“Rule”) that restoration of non-jurisdictional waters and wetlands at compensatory mitigation sites may offset impacts to jurisdictional […]
A federal court decided in February that in the rush to transfer wetlands permitting authority to Florida in the final days of the Trump administration, federal agencies and officials had violated the Endangered Species Act and other federal laws. Florida took over permitting under Section 404 of the Clean Water Act in December 2020. The […]
Does the EPA’s revised definition of “Waters of the United States” conform with the U.S. Supreme Court’s May 25, 2023, decision in the case of Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency? Background Leading to EPA’s Revised Definition of Waters of the United States “WOTUS” Prior to the May 25, 2023, Sackett decision, the 2023 WOTUS Rule was finalized by […]
From January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2022, wildfires in the United States destroyed approximately 25 million acres of land. During this same period, 26,400 wildfires destroyed roughly 7.2 million acres of land in California. As the climate changes, wildfires in California will become more unexpected and uncontrollable. As a result, state and federal agencies […]
June 16, 2023 | Category:
News | Tags:
Carbon,
Carbon Dioxide,
Carbon Pollution Standards,
Clean Air Act,
Climate Crisis,
CO2,
EPA,
Fossil Fuel,
GHG,
Power PlantsThe Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) is making yet another attempt (its third) to regulate carbon emissions from power plants with a new proposal, looking to target the electric power sector that is responsible for 25% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. Previous attempts by prior administrations failed, but the Biden administration is […]
To look at the headlines today, you might think the sky was falling and the United States was headed off into a ditch somewhere—all because of the United States Supreme Court. Headlines proclaiming that the Supreme Court “delivered a blow to wetlands” (NBC News), “shrinks clean water protections” (The Guardian), “weakens clean water protections” (Vox) […]
A Bipartisan Senate voted to roll back the Biden WOTUS rule under the Congressional Review Act, which requires a simple majority and cannot be filibustered. The House passed the same resolution 227-198, also with Democrats joining Republicans in the vote. The final rule, issued Dec. 30 from the Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers, replaced […]
Ryan Zinke, secretary of the Interior Department, has been a key figure in the Trump administration’s push to roll back burdensome environmental regulations and ramp up domestic energy production. Mr. Zinke is facing increased scrutiny based on allegations that he abused travel spending by paying for his wife to travel with him, and maintained close […]
President Trump released his second proposed budget on February 12, 2018, and among the line items taking a hit is public lands. Funding for the Department of the Interior (“DOI”) is expected to be impacted by 17%. While the DOI will be impacted, the proposed budget does include $18 billion for the anticipated reorganization of […]
February 4, 2018 | Category:
Land Use,
Lawsuit,
News,
Water | Tags:
appeal,
court case,
environmental group,
EPA,
land use,
Land Use Law,
lawsuit,
Water,
Water Law,
Waters Of The U.S.On Thursday, the Ninth Circuit ruled that wastewater injections whose pollutions reach navigable U.S. waters via groundwater are subject to the Clean Water Act (“CWA”). Experts say this decision could drastically expand the scope of CWA liability and includes activities ranging from coal ash and pipeline spills to agricultural runoff. In coming to this decision, […]
