Although the focus and priorities of a new US EPA administration under President-elect Trump remain unclear, regulatory changes may be in the works that could require certain industrial entities to either change how they handle stormwater discharges or face lawsuits brought by environmental groups. As described more fully below, US EPA entered into a settlement … Continue Reading
On January 21, 2016, Senate Republicans failed to override President Obama’s veto of a recent legislative attempt to block the “Waters of the US” Rule. The challenged Rule defines the term “waters of the United States” under the Clean Water Act, while, as we noted previously, expanding federal jurisdiction over waters that were not previously … Continue Reading
On December 15, 2015, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia rejected challenges by energy industry groups and several states that are seeking to scrap US EPA’s Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (“MATS”) final rule. White Stallion Energy Center, LLC v. EPA, Case No. 12-1100. The Court remanded the rule to US EPA for … Continue Reading
A federal investigation has revealed that US EPA violated federal law by utilizing “covert propaganda” and illegal grassroots lobbying to encourage voters to support its Waters of the United States Rule (the “Clean Water Rule“). US EPA’s legal violations in the context of the Clean Water Rule could lead to additional trouble for the agency. Members of the … Continue Reading
On September 29, 2015, US EPA issued a final rule for the regulation of emissions from the nation’s 142 petroleum refinery operations (the “Refinery Rule”). The regulatory structure underlying the rule is complex, but essentially includes both a “residual risk review” to assess the risk to public health, and a “technology review” where, as the … Continue Reading
On September 30, 2015, the US District Court for the District of Wyoming preliminarily enjoined the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from enforcing its final rule regulating hydraulic fracturing on federal and Native American lands, pending the resolution of a challenge to the rule under the Administrative Procedures Act (APA) brought by various industry, state, … Continue Reading
On August 24, 2015, Judge H. Russel Holland of the US District Court for the District of Alaska dealt a blow to Pebble Limited Partnership’s (Pebble Partnership) efforts to obtain documents which it believes could support its claim that US EPA failed to comply with the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) by coordinating with environmental … Continue Reading
On August 27, 2015, the US District Court for the District of North Dakota granted a motion for preliminary injunction to a coalition of 13 states (the States) attempting to block implementation of the Waters of the United States (WOTUS) Rule, promulgated by US EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) and set to go into … Continue Reading
Earlier this month, US EPA released its long-awaited draft assessment on the impact of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) on the nation’s drinking water resources. The assessment, titled Assessment of the Potential Impacts of Hydraulic Fracturing for Oil and Gas on Drinking Water Resources, represents over four years of study into the potential of hydraulic fracturing to … Continue Reading
Recently, the US Chamber of Commerce (Chamber) published its report Truth In Regulating: Restoring Transparency to EPA Rulemaking, criticizing EPA for not providing critical details about the regulatory intent and true costs associated with significant Agency rulemakings. The Chamber report follows on the heels of last week’s passage of H.R. 1029, the EPA Science Advisory Board Reform … Continue Reading
This month, in Perez v. Mortgage Bankers Association, the US Supreme Court overturned the D.C. Circuit’s Paralyzed Veteran doctrine, rejecting nearly 20 years of precedent requiring federal agencies to abide by notice-and-comment rulemaking procedures when they substantially alter an “interpretive” rule. However, the decision also hints that even broader changes may be afoot. Writing in … Continue Reading
On January 22, 2015, US EPA announced that it is proposing to amend the requirements governing the use of dispersants and other chemical and biological agents used in response to oil spills, which are contained in Subpart J of the National Oil and Hazardous Substances Pollution Contingency Plan (NCP). The proposed amendments come as a result … Continue Reading
On November 25, 2014, a federal judge granted a motion for preliminary injunction, and ordered US EPA to stop all work pertaining to its investigation of and proposed plan to restrict discharges from the prospective Pebble Mine project near Bristol Bay in Alaska. The plaintiff, Pebble Partnership, contended that US EPA failed to comply with the requirements … Continue Reading
The extended public comment period for the US EPA and Army Corp of Engineers’ proposed rule to redefine “waters of the United States” under the Clean Water Act (CWA) expired November 14, 2014. The proposed rule has come under intense scrutiny for its apparent expansion of CWA jurisdiction. US EPA received nearly 500,000 public comments … Continue Reading
On April 21, 2014, US EPA and the US Army Corps of Engineers issued a proposed rule to redefine “waters of the United States” under the Clean Water Act (CWA). As previously reported here, the proposed rule has come under intense scrutiny for its apparent expansion of CWA jurisdiction. Now, recent reports published by US EPA’s … Continue Reading
On August 12, 2014, the Ninth Circuit, in Sierra Club v. EPA, vacated US EPA’s decision to issue a Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) permit to construct a power plant under outdated – and less stringent – air quality standards in place when the permit application was submitted. The Court held that the Clean Air … Continue Reading
On July 11, in National Mining Association v. McCarthy – a case very important to the surface coal mining industry in the Appalachians – the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected industry arguments that US EPA had improperly adopted policies that made it harder for such mines to obtain two kinds of Clean Water Act (CWA) permits: permits under Section … Continue Reading
As discussed in our recent blog post and client alert, the proposed Carbon Pollution Emission Guidelines for Existing Stationary Sources (ESPS) has now been published in the Federal Register. This publication commences the 120 day comment period. Comments on the proposed rule must be received by US EPA on or before October 16, 2014.… Continue Reading
On June 2, US EPA published a final rule that outlines the regulatory framework states must follow to implement the 1997 and 2006 standards for fine particulate matter, or PM2.5. The Rule was issued in response to a remand from the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in January 2013, which returned for correction a pair of rules … Continue Reading
As detailed in our recent Client Alert, the Obama Administration, in an effort to curb carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, has released a proposed rule that, if finalized, will require 30% reductions of CO2 emissions from 2005 emission levels from existing power plants by the year 2030. The proposed existing source performance standard (ESPS) purports to … Continue Reading
US EPA has its work cut out for it as the Agency begins to review over 10,000 comments submitted concerning its proposed 2013 Clean Air Act New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for new power plants through the close of the comment period on May 9, 2014. US EPA’s work begins just as it plans to release its proposed … Continue Reading
On April 15, 2014, in White Stallion Energy Center v. EPA, the US Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS) promulgated by US EPA on February 16, 2012, which sets new emissions standards for new and existing coal- and oil-fired power plants. EPA estimates that 1,400 power plants will be affected by the … Continue Reading
Here are 10 of our most popular posts of 2013: USEPA Approves Use of Phase I ESA Standard ASTM E 1527-13 for AAI – read online UK Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 Reverses Previous Burden of Proof for Strict Liability Health and Safety Offences – read online 8th Circuit Denies USEPA’s Petition for Rehearing … Continue Reading
In a 2-1 ruling last week, the D.C. Circuit said the Environmental Protection Agency had failed to explain why it was treating biogenic sources of greenhouse gas emissions differently than other sources, and vacated the rule giving biomass power plants reprieve from carbon dioxide emission standards until July 2014. Squire Sanders Partner Allen Kacenjar discusses … Continue Reading
