On September 28, 2023, US EPA announced its final review and approval of the Maumee River Watershed Nutrient Total Maximum Daily Load (Maumee TMDL), which Ohio EPA submitted for approval on June 30, 2023. In issuing its...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently published a letter in response to a petition filed by several environmental groups requesting that EPA revise Clean Water Act (CWA) regulations for concentrated animal...more
The Supreme Court issued 58 opinions in the October 2022 Term. Rulings in several cases will affect the practice of regulatory and administrative law either directly or indirectly, as is recounted below. Before the Court...more
PFAS – per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances – are a family of human-made chemicals, often referred to as “forever chemicals,” and are found in a wide range of products used by the food supply industry. Because of their...more
The Chesapeake Legal Alliance recently won a notable victory for the Assateague Coastal Trust in a successful challenge to the Maryland Department of Environmental Protection’s issuance of a state NPDES general permit for...more
EPA is currently reviewing comments on its November 14, 2018 proposed rule to exempt livestock farms from reporting routine farm air emissions under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) and intends...more
EPA recently released a final regional office realignment plan in response to President Trump’s March 2017 Executive Order 13781. That order required EPA and other federal agencies to improve efficiency, effectiveness, and...more
In a new effort to clarify the breadth of exemptions for farm animal waste emission reporting, EPA has proposed a rule that exempts such emissions from the reporting requirements under the Emergency Planning and Community...more
Farms.com discussed a proposed EPA rule exempting farms from emission reporting. USAgNet discussed EU restrictions on use of antibiotics on healthy farm animals. The Conversation reported on current efforts to develop...more
The Court of Special Appeals of Maryland (“Court”) addressed an appeal of a Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County, Maryland, (“Circuit Court”) decision upholding Maryland Department of the Environment (“MDE”) permits for...more
On February 1, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D. C. Circuit issued a stay delaying the implementation of a rule that will require farmers to estimate and report emissions from animal waste. Farmers will now have...more
On April 11, 2017, the Federal Court struck down the 2008 EPA Rule exempting most farms from reporting releases of hazardous air pollutants under CERCLA and EPCRA. The rule exempted farms which had fewer animals than large...more
Introduction - Let me be Captain Obvious here. When the title is that long, the topic, including its context and history, is convoluted. Let’s start at the end, work our way toward the beginning, and come full circle. On...more
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) issued a September 19th report titled: Eleven Years After Agreement, EPA Has Not Developed Reliable Emission Estimation...more
On April 11, 2017, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit struck down a U.S. EPA rule exempting concentrated animal feeding operations (“CAFOs”) from requirements under CERCLA that mandate reporting of releases of...more
On September 15, 2015, EPA solicited public comment on its upcoming cycle of National Enforcement Initiatives (NEI) for fiscal years (FY) 2017-2019. EPA is proposing to adopt three new enforcement initiatives and is...more