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USEPA Opts Not to Appeal 8th Circuit Decision in Iowa League of Cities v. EPA

USEPA has decided not to appeal the 8th Circuit’s March 25, 2013 decision in Iowa League of Cities v. EPA, which vacated USEPA’s across-the-board prohibitions on the use of mixing zones for primary contact recreation waters and “blending” for peak wet weather flows.  The 8th Circuit previously denied USEPA’s request for rehearing.  The deadline for filing an appeal … Continue Reading

8th Circuit Denies USEPA’s Petition for Rehearing of Blending Decision in Iowa League of Cities v. EPA

The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals issued an Order on July 10th summarily denying USEPA’s Petition for Rehearing (see previous frESH blog post – USEPA Seeks Rehearing of the 8th Circuit’s Blending Decision) of its decision in Iowa League of Cities v. EPA.  The denial leaves intact the 8th Circuit’s  momentous opinion which vacated USEPA’s blending and mixing zone prohibitions (see … Continue Reading

Obama’s Climate Change Action Plan

During a speech at Georgetown University on June 25, 2013, President Obama unveiled his climate change action plan.  Not surprisingly, the plan seeks to increase reliance on renewable energy and decrease consumption of fossil fuels. It further directs USEPA to finalize the much anticipated regulation of energy generating units (EGUs) before the end of the President’s … Continue Reading

Obama Administration Increases the Social Cost Of Carbon in the US

Overnight going “green” became a more attractive option for businesses and manufactures.  How?  The Obama administration increased the social cost of carbon (SCC). This increase will impact every industry that deals with greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions regardless of size.  The SCC is a monetary value agencies use to perform cost/benefit analysis to quantify the benefits … Continue Reading

USEPA Seeks Rehearing of 8th Circuit’s Blending Decision in Iowa League of Cities v. USEPA

USEPA filed on May 9 a Petition for Rehearing En Banc of the 8th Circuit’s decision in Iowa League of Cities v. USEPA , which held that USEPA failed to abide by proper notice and comment procedures and further lacked authority under the Clean Water Act to prohibit the use of blending by wastewater utilities.  … Continue Reading

8th Circuit Vacates EPA’s Mixing Zone and Blending Prohibitions

In a pivotal opinion, the 8th Circuit vacated EPA’s across-the-board prohibitions on the use of mixing zones for primary contact recreation waters and “blending” for peak wet weather flows.  Iowa League of Cities v. EPA, Case No. 11-3412 (March 25, 2013). In this case, the Iowa League of Cities challenged two letters penned by EPA … Continue Reading

USEPA Rejects NRDC Petition to Set New Nutrient Level Standards for POTWs

In 2007, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and ten other environmental non-governmental organizations (together, the “Environmental NGOs”) petitioned USEPA to establish nationally applicable technology-based secondary treatment standards for publically owned treatment works (POTWs) to control nitrogen and phosphorous. After sitting on it for over 5 years, USEPA recently denied the Environmental NGOs’ petition on December … Continue Reading

District Court Decision Casts Doubt on Planned Revisions to USEPA’s Municipal Stormwater Regulatory Program

A recent decision from the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia found that the Clean Water Act (CWA) does not authorize USEPA to regulate stormwater volume, or “flow,” as a surrogate measure for individual pollutants such as sediment contained in municipal stormwater runoff. The decision may cause difficulties for USEPA’s planned revisions to … Continue Reading
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