On April 10, 2024, U.S. EPA issued the first-ever, national drinking water standard for a group of chemicals commonly referred to as “PFAS” or “forever chemicals”. PFAS generally refers to a family of chemicals known as “per-...more
On January 29, Governor DeWine announced a new statewide initiative aimed at eliminating a common fire suppression material called Aqueous Film Forming Foam (AFFF). AFFF, also known as firefighting foam, is a fire suppression...more
Today, on February 7, 2024, U.S. EPA announced its final air quality standard to govern fine particulate matter (PM 2.5), also known as soot. More specifically, U.S. EPA set an annual health-based national ambient air...more
The Ohio Department of Development (ODOD) recently released further application details and information regarding its Building Demolition and Site Revitalization Program (the Program), which recently received renewed funding...more
11/1/2023
/ Brownfield Properties ,
Demolition ,
Funding ,
Neighborhood Revitalization ,
Procurement Guidelines ,
Real Estate Development ,
Set-Aside Contracts ,
Site Remediation ,
State and Local Government ,
State Budgets ,
State Funding ,
Urban Planning & Development
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
On August 29, 2023, the U.S. EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced a pre-publication version of their final rule amending the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) in response to the Sackett v. EPA...more
8/30/2023
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Amended Rules ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Final Rules ,
Navigable Waters ,
Sackett v EPA ,
SCOTUS ,
Substantial Nexus ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States
Today, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in the Sackett v. EPA case, in which it narrowed the test for determining whether wetlands are subject to federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act, thereby...more
On May 4, 2023, Judge James Carr of the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio, issued an Order approving a consent decree in settlement of litigation pending for nearly six years....more
On March 14, 2023, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revealed its long-awaited proposal to regulate per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under the Safe Drinking Water Act through issuance of a...more
On February 10, 2023, the Sixth Circuit issued an opinion in Sierra Club, et al. v. U.S. EPA, et al., (Case No. 21-3057). The case involved a petition for review filed by the Sierra Club, the Ohio Environmental Council, and...more
3/22/2023
/ Air Pollution ,
Biden Administration ,
Clean Air Act ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Review ,
Executive Orders ,
Motion to Remand ,
NAAQS ,
National Emissions Standards ,
Nuisance ,
Permits ,
Public Health ,
Remand ,
Sierra Club ,
State Implementation Plans (SIPs)
On December 30, 2022, U.S. EPA and the U.S. Department of the Army announced a final rule revising the definition of Waters of the United States (WOTUS). The final rule largely follows the substance of U.S. EPA’s proposed...more
On December 29, 2022, the Ohio Supreme Court issued a definitive opinion that, at least in Ohio, the judicial branch is never required to defer to an agency’s interpretation of the law. TWISM Enterprises, L.L.C. v. State...more
On July 21, 2022, new Ohio law governing regulation of ephemeral streams went into effect. The new law is the result of House Bill 175, which was passed by the Ohio General Assembly on April 6, 2022. ...more
On January 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a petition for a writ of certiorari in Sackett v. EPA (case no. 21-454) regarding the question,“[w]hether the Ninth Circuit set forth the proper test for determining whether...more
On November 18, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of the Army announced a proposed rule to revise the definition of Waters of the United States (WOTUS). According to the agencies, the...more
On October 13, 2021, Ohio EPA issued its water quality certification pursuant to Section 401 of the Clean Water Act for the 41 nationwide permits (NWPs) that are currently set to expire on March 18, 2022.
NWPs offer a...more
On August 30, 2021, the United States District Court for the District of Arizona issued an order vacating the Navigable Waters Protection Rule and remanding the rule back to U.S. EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The...more
9/7/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Navigable Waters ,
Obama Administration ,
Remand ,
Trump Administration ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Vacated ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
On June 9, 2021, the Biden administration announced its intent to repeal and replace the Trump administration’s 2020 Navigable Waters Protection Rule, which defines which waterbodies constitute “waters of the United States”...more
On May 24, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court released its opinion in the Territory of Guam v. United States case. At issue was whether Guam could maintain a Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act...more
5/27/2021
/ CERCLA ,
Clean Water Act ,
Clean-Up Costs ,
Consent Decrees ,
Contribution Claims ,
Cost Recovery ,
Environmental Liability ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Remediation Costs ,
Guam ,
Guam v United States ,
Hazardous Waste ,
SCOTUS ,
Statute of Limitations ,
U.S. Navy
On December 8, 2020, U.S. EPA announced issuance of draft guidance to clarify its view of how the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund decision should be applied to its Clean Water Act National...more
12/10/2020
/ Appeals ,
Clean Water Act ,
Comment Period ,
Direct Discharge ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Functional Equivalent ,
Groundwater ,
Hawaii Wildlife Fund v County of Maui ,
Navigable Waters ,
NPDES ,
Permits ,
Point Sources ,
Remand ,
SCOTUS ,
Vacated ,
Waters of the United States
On November 19, 2020, U.S. EPA published its decision to remove Ohio’s air pollution nuisance rule from Ohio’s SIP in the Federal Register. The removal came at the request of Ohio EPA because the nuisance rule does not have a...more
Update: On September 15, 2020, the Army Corps published a notice of proposed rulemaking in the Federal Register (85 FR 57298) for the reissuance and modification of its Nationwide Permits....more
On August 27, 2020, Ohio Governor Mike DeWine sent a letter to the Department of Defense (DOD) Secretary Mark Esper requesting DOD cooperation in addressing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) threatening the drinking...more
Please join several Bricker & Eckler attorneys and Mike Foley, Director of Cuyahoga County's Department of Sustainability, for a discussion on the Brooklyn solar project, Ohio's first solar project to be constructed at a...more
On August 3, 2020, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced a proposal to renew and revise its 52 nationwide permits and issue five new nationwide permits. Nationwide permits, which are general permits that authorize work...more