A United States District Court (W.D. Texas, “Court”) addressed in a June 11th Decision issues arising out of a Clean Water Act citizen suit enforcement action. See Ragsdale v. JLM Construction Services, Inc. 2024 WL 2933009. ...more
As predicted in February, our nation's highest court is about to hear its third Clean Water Act in four years. Anyone who doubts the outcome of this case hasn't read the other two Supreme Court opinions and that brings to...more
EPA issued a press release yesterday that caught my eye and if you're in the business of building things, including solar projects, it is worthy of your attention too. The press release announces a settlement between a solar...more
There has been a joke for some time now that whenever MassDEP proposes new regulations, they must have finally developed the performance standard for Land Subject to Coastal Storm Flowage (“LSCSF”). Well, the joke’s on us,...more
Earlier this week, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed EPA’s NPDES permit issued to San Francisco’s Oceanside sewer system. San Francisco had challenged the permit on the ground that EPA does not have authority to...more
This week Massachusetts Federal District Court Judge Richard Stearns dismissed two counts of the Conservation Law Foundation's and Charles River Watershed Association's lawsuit against EPA and stayed until September of next...more
Idaho has joined a Texas lawsuit over a new interpretation of the Clean Water Act’s “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) rule, alleging that it is too vague, oversteps the bounds of federal authority, and puts the liberties...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Wednesday published a final rule defining “Waters of the United States,” or WOTUS, which determines the extent of federal regulatory authority...more
Last week, EPA and the Army Corps finally published their long-awaited rule defining “Waters of the United States.” Will the WOTUS rule finally provide the clarity for which we have been waiting, allowing the rule to be as...more
While many of us were focused on the 2022 elections, the Conservation Law Foundation and the Charles River Watershed Association again sued the Environmental Protection Agency because EPA isn't regulating indirect stormwater...more
Last week, EPA and the Army Corps proposed a new rule to define what constitutes “waters of the United States.” Déjà vu all over again. Under the proposal, the agencies: are exercising their discretionary authority to...more
Yesterday, Judge Rosemary Marquez vacated the Navigable Waters Protection Rule, the misnomer also known as the Trump WOTUS rule. In response to this citizens’ suit challenging NWPR, the Biden EPA and Army Corps of Engineers...more
Proposed regulatory changes will increase the extent of lands throughout the country that will be designated, and regulated, as wetlands. On June 9, 2021, the Department of the Army and the Environmental Protection Agency...more
The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (“TDEC”) issued a March 29th Proposed Order and Assessment (“Order”) to Sergio Family Trust (“SFT”) regarding the alleged failure to obtain coverage under the General...more
On April 21, 2020, the EPA and USACE (jointly the "Agencies") had published in the Federal Register the final rule, "Navigable Waters Protection Rule" (NWPR), which has a scheduled effective date of June 22, 2020. Thus, what...more
The National Association of Clean Water Agencies (“NACWA”) and other municipalities filed an Amicus Brief in the pending Supreme Court of the United States case styled County of Maui v. Hawai’i Wildlife Fund, et al....more
TSCA/FIFRA/TRI - EPA Publishes First Draft TSCA Chemical Risk Evaluation: On November 15, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a Federal Register notice announcing the availability of and seeking...more
On August 9, 2018, the United States District Court for the Central District of California held that the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) is required to more specifically regulate certain types of...more
After years of drought, the El Niño storms have been bringing much-needed rain and snow to California–albeit in quantities significantly less than we hoped for thus far. In addition to the anticipated snow packs, flowing...more
The last thing that public agency leaders want to hear is that looming changes may make operating and building new public infrastructure more challenging and expensive. Unfortunately, proposed changes by the Environmental...more