The rapid changes relating to NEPA-implementing regulations accelerated this week, as the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published an interim final rule (IFR) removing its NEPA regulations from the Code of...more
3/3/2025
/ Environmental Policies ,
Executive Orders ,
Government Agencies ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
Natural Resources ,
NEPA ,
Permits ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rulemaking Process
On January 22, 2025, the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) announced that it would begin accepting applications to fund coastal sand dune restoration and protection projects.
Last year, the Legislature...more
On January 7, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, in Citizens Action Coalition of Indiana v. FERC, rejected a National Environmental Protection Act (NEPA) and Natural Gas Act (NGA) challenge to FERC’s...more
1/13/2025
/ Appeals ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
FERC ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Infrastructure ,
Jurisdiction ,
Natural Gas ,
Natural Gas Act ,
NEPA ,
Pipelines ,
Regulatory Requirements
On November 12, 2024, a split panel of the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals declined to address whether the FAA complied with the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) NEPA regulations because those regulations are...more
Proposed tax regulations to be released this year may clarify whether agricultural land contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) qualify for a federal tax credit that would incentivize renewable energy...more
9/11/2024
/ CERCLA ,
Energy Projects ,
Energy Tax Incentives ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Investment Tax Credits ,
IRS ,
PFAS ,
Production Tax Credit ,
Renewable Energy ,
Tax Credits ,
U.S. Treasury
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) just issued a direct final rule amending reporting deadlines for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA).
As described in our...more
On July 19, 2024, the D.C. Circuit Court upheld modified EPA regulations on monitoring biogas-derived renewable fuel, rejecting the petition of the Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas (the Coalition) -- a trade association...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to add specific per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) to the Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) program under Section 313 of the Emergency Planning and Community...more
The White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) today published its final rule to implement “Phase 2” of its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulation amendments. This is CEQ’s final step to unwind many of...more
On April 16, 2024, Maine Governor Janet Mills signed into law significant amendments to the PFAS in Products Law. Initially passed in 2021, the PFAS in Products Law required manufacturers of products with intentionally added...more
4/24/2024
/ Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Department of Environmental Protection ,
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) ,
Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ,
Medical Devices ,
NASA ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
USDA
On April 19, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it was designating two common per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) as hazardous substances under the Comprehensive Environmental Response,...more
4/22/2024
/ CERCLA ,
Contamination ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
PFAS ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Toxic Chemicals
On April 10, 2024, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued the first ever National Primary Drinking Water Regulations (NPDWRs), which are legally enforceable national standards, setting limits for five individual...more
The Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has posted for public comment its draft Chapter 375 rulemaking, which would establish a compensation fee for solar, wind, and “high-impact transmission line” projects. ...more
The Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) has proposed sweeping and substantive changes to its Chapter 2 rules, which govern permit applications, appeals, permit modifications and suspensions, and other...more
The Maine Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) is now accepting proposals from entities that wish to obtain currently unavoidable use (CUU) designations under the PFAS in Products statute.
This statute allows the...more
As forecast in our December 2022 client alert, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a pre-publication version of its final rule that eliminates the use of the de minimis exemption for reporting of per- and...more
10/26/2023
/ CERCLA ,
De Minimus Quantity Exemption ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
EPCRA ,
Final Rules ,
Hazardous Substances ,
PFAS ,
Proposed Rules ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) ,
Waste Management
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today published in the Federal Register its final rule establishing reporting and recordkeeping requirements for per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) under the Toxic Substances...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) published in the September 8th Federal Register a final rule to amend the “Revised Definition of ‘Waters of the United States’” rule....more
On August 10, 2023, the Department of Energy (“DOE”) issued a Notice of Proposed Rule Making (“NOPR”) proposing to establish an integrated Coordinated Interagency Transmission Authorizations Program (“CITAP Program”) that...more
8/16/2023
/ Clean Water Act ,
Department of Energy (DOE) ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Energy Projects ,
Environmental Impact Statements ,
Federal Power Act ,
Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) ,
Infrastructure ,
Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) ,
National Historic Preservation Act ,
NEPA ,
Notice of Intent ,
Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Transmission Planning
The White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) recently published a proposed rule that makes substantial revisions to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) regulations, implementing the amendments directed by...more
Perhaps settling a debate that has been raging for at least 20 years, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a decision today in Sackett v. EPA that is intended to settle, once and for all, the scope of federal power over wetlands. ...more
Effective 3/31/2023, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) changed the classification of the Northern Long Eared Bat (NLEB) from threatened to endangered. As discussed in our December and April client alerts, this...more
As expected, and as described in our March 15 client alert, EPA today published in the Federal Register its first-ever National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) for six PFAS substances in drinking water....more
EPA has announced its first ever National Primary Drinking Water Regulation (NPDWR) proposal for six PFAS substances in drinking water. Importantly, EPA is proposing legally enforceable national standards, called Maximum...more
On January 25, 2023, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) announced that it is delaying the effective date of the final rule to reclassify the northern long-eared bat (NLEB) from threatened to endangered by 60 days, from...more