Regional Boards’ enforcement of the Construction General Permit (CGP) and Industrial General Permit (IGP) continues to yield high penalty figures; transition to 2022 CGP brings new requirements; and the forthcoming...more
A California Superior Court judge ruled last week that Sonoma County must do more to ensure responsible groundwater pumping under the state’s Public Trust Doctrine, which holds that rivers, creeks, and other waterways are...more
On February 23, 2023, California EPA (Cal EPA) finally released a “final draft” version of the much-awaited vapor intrusion guidance, Final Draft Supplemental Guidance: Screening and Evaluating Vapor Intrusion (VI Guidance)...more
Biden picks North Carolina environmental chief to lead EPA - Associated Press – December 17 - President-elect Joe Biden this Thursday selected Michael S. Regan to serve as Administrator of the U.S. Environmental...more
Montage Healdsburg resort faces $6.4 million fine for construction stormwater-related violations - Bullet The Press-Democrat – September 15 - The developer of the Montage Healdsburg hotel in Sonoma County is facing...more
Federal court blocks Interior Department’s relaxation of migratory bird safeguards - U.S. News & World Report – August 12 - The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York this Tuesday struck down a U.S....more
United States District Court (District of Colorado) Judge William J. Martinez issued a June 19th Order granting the State of Colorado’s (“Colorado”) request for a preliminary injunction of the June 22nd effective date of the...more
In February, the California Department of Toxic Substances Control, or DTSC, the State Water Resources Control Board, or SWRCB, and the San Francisco Bay Regional Water Quality Control Board released a much-anticipated draft...more
The State of California recently sent a 60-day notice of intent to sue to the Secretaries of Commerce and the Interior and concurrently filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California...more
The San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board recently issued a fact sheet summarizing changes to its approach to remediating environmental impacts and mitigating vapor intrusion (VI) at properties impacted with...more
This Corner Briefing highlights new Environmental Screening Levels (ESLs) established by the San Francisco Regional Water Quality Control Board on Jan. 24, 2019. The new ESLs have the potential for making sites that cleared...more
Oil World Turns Upside Down as U.S. Sells Oil in Middle East - "Yet, in a trade that illustrates how the rise of the American shale industry is upending energy markets across the globe, the U.A.E. bought oil directly from...more
Local public agencies realized an important victory in a more-than-decade-long, who-should-foot-the-stormwater-bill battle — a battle focused on a permit issued by the Los Angeles Regional Water Quality Control Board to the...more
This is the first update on environmental regulatory and legal developments in Los Angeles and adjacent counties, as well as the Southern San Joaquin l Valley. Let us know what you think. Your comments on this Update will...more
Environmental and Policy Focus: San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board amends regional MS4 permit to provide alternate compliance: Allen Matkin - Nov 19: On Wednesday afternoon, the San Diego Regional Water...more
NEW REGULATORY DEVELOPMENTS - Federal - Release of Risk and Exposure Assessment for the Review of the Primary National Ambient Air Quality Standards for Nitrogen Dioxide. EPA is currently reviewing the primary...more
Hydraulic fracturing, also known as “fracking,” has come under scrutiny for its potential impacts on water, including the risks to water quality and the amount of water used in the practice. California’s new regulations on...more
Environmental and Policy Focus - California drought: plan would reverse aqueduct flow to send water back to farms: San Jose Mercury News - May 8: Water has flowed from Northern California's snow-capped peaks to the...more