Alaskans should prepare for major changes to the unique legal framework governing tribal lands in Alaska. In mid-November, the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) announced that it can acquire lands in trust for Alaska’s...more
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued an order on November 17, 2022, approving the surrender of the FERC license for the Lower Klamath Project. This order authorizes the decommissioning and removal of four...more
As the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has ramped up offshore wind development to meet the Biden-Harris administration’s goal of generating 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030, the question of how the expansion of...more
The Bureau of Indian Affairs has proposed revising the regulations governing the acquisition of land into trust for Indian tribes. The proposed revisions, if adopted, would streamline the fee-to-trust process and eliminate...more
Climate change poses the biggest threat to our ocean and to the future of the planet. Its harmful impacts can be mitigated by decarbonizing our energy grid. Achieving major carbon emissions reductions in the electricity...more
5/16/2022
/ BOEM ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Energy ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Sector ,
FERC ,
Infrastructure ,
Offshore Wind ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Renewable Energy ,
Research and Development
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service revoked its January 7, 2021, rule defining the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act as it applies to conduct that results in the injury or death of protected migratory birds. Revocation of...more
10/11/2021
/ Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) ,
Best Practices ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Enforcement ,
Final Rules ,
Incidental Take Permits ,
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) ,
National Environmental Policies ,
Permits ,
Power Infrastructure ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) issued a proposed rule to revoke the Service’s January 7, 2021, final rule defining the scope of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) as it applies to conduct resulting in the...more
The U.S. Senate passed the Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Act of 2021 by a nearly unanimous vote in its first significant legislative step towards fulfilling the water infrastructure goals of the Biden...more
Earlier this month, a report from the American Society of Civil Engineers gave America’s infrastructure an overall grade of C-. The nation’s water infrastructure fell below that average with a C- for drinking water...more
The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, on November 6, 2020, introduced a proposed Protected Surface Water Program, which would regulate certain state surface waters that are newly excluded from the regulatory scope...more
Taking the next step in its efforts to streamline the environmental review process for projects under federal jurisdiction, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published proposed regulations on January 10...more
1/14/2020
/ CEQ ,
Congressional Review Act ,
Environmental Assessments ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Review ,
Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (FAST Act) ,
NEPA ,
Notice of Intent ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Rulemaking Process
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service issued a set of three new final rules on August 12, 2019, that substantially revise the regulations implementing the Endangered Species Act. The new...more
The Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers announced a proposed rule to redefine the term “waters of the United States” under the Clean Water Act on December 11, 2018. The proposed rule, which awaits...more
12/18/2018
/ Bright-Line Rule ,
Certiorari ,
Clean Water Act ,
Clean Water Rule ,
Comment Period ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Jurisdiction ,
NEPA ,
Proposed Regulation ,
Proposed Rules ,
SCOTUS ,
Trump Administration ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Water ,
Waters of the United States
The California Department of Fish and Wildlife and the California attorney general have jointly issued an advisory regarding California’s state law protections for migratory birds. The three-page advisory affirms that...more
In a unanimous decision with immediate repercussions for the administration of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the U.S. Supreme Court held that an area is eligible for designation as critical habitat under the ESA only if...more
11/30/2018
/ Appeals ,
Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Economic Impact Analysis ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Judicial Review ,
Private Property ,
SCOTUS ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Weyerhaeuser Company v United States Fish and Wildlife Service
Late last week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service withdrew two environmental policies adopted in late 2016 by the Obama administration that address mitigation for impacts to natural resources. These two policies established...more
8/2/2018
/ Bureau of Land Management ,
Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
FLPMA ,
Mitigation ,
NEPA ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) (collectively, the Services) published three proposed rules last week that would revise the regulations implementing portions of the...more
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued a guidance memorandum addressing when an incidental take permit may be needed under Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Endangered Species Act for projects that modify habitat of federally...more
The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of the Solicitor issued Memorandum M-37050, on December 22, 2017, which adopts the position that the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) prohibition on the “taking” or “killing” of...more
The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of the Solicitor issued Memorandum M-37050, on December 22, 2017, which adopts the position that the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) prohibition on the “taking” or “killing” of...more
The Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers released a proposed rule on June 27, 2017, that will rescind the Obama administration’s 2015 Clean Water Rule and recodify the pre-2015 regulations that...more
6/30/2017
/ Clean Water Act ,
Clean Water Rule ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Inland Waterways ,
Jurisdiction ,
Navigable Waters ,
Obama Administration ,
Rapanos v US ,
Rescission ,
Trump Administration ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has formally approved the long-awaited, 30-year eagle take rule, which will allow renewable energy companies and other developers of large projects to obtain a 30-year permit (as opposed to...more
In the latest chapter of the seemingly never-ending controversy over the Clean Water Act’s reach, on February 28, 2017, President Trump signed an executive order directing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S....more
3/3/2017
/ Clean Water Act ,
Clean Water Rule ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Navigable Waters ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Trump Administration ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Water Pollution ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
The U.S. Department of the Interior’s Office of the Solicitor issued Memorandum M-37041 on January 10, 2017, arguing that incidental take is prohibited under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). The solicitor’s opinion was...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit upheld the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Water Transfers Rule last week. Catskill Mountains Chapter of Trout Unlimited, et al. v. EPA, et al. 14-1823, 14-1909,...more