The Trump administration is moving to effectively eliminate a crucial protection in the half-century-old federal Endangered Species Act by redefining a single word: harm. A proposed rule, issued this Wednesday from the U.S....more
4/18/2025
/ California ,
Clean Water Act ,
Critical Habitat ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Energy Policy ,
Environmental Policies ,
Government Agencies ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
NOAA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pollution Control ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Health ,
Refineries ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
President Trump issued an executive order this Tuesday taking aim at state and local climate change laws and policies, including California’s landmark market program for reducing greenhouse gases. The order directs U.S....more
The Trump administration is offering coal-fired power plants and other industrial facilities an opportunity to obtain exemptions from Clean Air Act (CAA) requirements designed to reduce emissions of chemicals such as mercury,...more
On Tuesday, in a 5-4 opinion authored by Justice Samuel Alioto, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a pivotal ruling that the Clean Water Act (CWA) provisions authorizing the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to impose...more
3/7/2025
/ California ,
City and County of San Francisco v Environmental Protection Agency ,
Clean Water Act ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Logging ,
NPDES ,
Permits ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
SCOTUS ,
Sewer Systems ,
Trump Administration ,
Wastewater
On February 20, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) posted a pre-publication notice on its website of an Interim Final Rule rescinding its regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act...more
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Wednesday that it won’t order soil testing at properties damaged by the Eaton and Palisades fires after they have been cleaned by private federal contractors, breaking with a...more
Newly-appointed U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi wrote in a memo this Wednesday that the Justice Department will reverse a Biden-era directive to prioritize enforcement of environmental laws in disadvantaged and low-income...more
2/7/2025
/ Attorney General ,
Bureau of Land Management ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Funding ,
Oil & Gas ,
PFAS ,
SCOTUS ,
Trump Administration ,
Water ,
Wildfires
On Monday, January 13, 2025, California withdrew requests for Clean Air Act waivers from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) needed to support four recently adopted vehicle emissions regulations: 1) the Advanced...more
1/17/2025
/ Automotive Industry ,
California ,
CARB ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Violations ,
Fertilizers ,
National Emissions Standards ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
SCOTUS ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The White House announced on Monday that President Joe Biden would ban new offshore oil and gas drilling along most of the U.S. coastline. The order will protect 625 million acres of ocean along America’s Atlantic and Pacific...more
1/10/2025
/ Biden Administration ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Energy ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Policy ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Exxon Mobil ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Offshore Drilling ,
Oil & Gas ,
Recycling ,
Water
On December 12, 2024, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife released its draft Western Joshua Tree Conservation Plan (Draft Conservation Plan) to the California Fish and Game Commission (Commission), as required by...more
12/23/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
California ,
California Fish and Game Commission ,
CARB ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Conservation ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Donald Trump ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Landfills ,
State and Local Government ,
Well Drilling
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Monday banned two solvents found in everyday products that can cause cancer and other serious diseases. It was a move long sought by environmental and health advocates, even...more
12/13/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Cancer ,
Drinking Water ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Exposure ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Water Supplies
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Wednesday issued a new regulation preventing per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as PFAS, from being approved through low volume exemptions — abridged reviews...more
12/6/2024
/ Biden Administration ,
California ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Infrastructure ,
Native American Issues ,
Oil & Gas ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Settlement ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Trump Administration ,
Water
In the last four years, California has adopted some of the nation’s most innovative air regulations, including a ban on new gasoline-powered car sales by 2035 and a prohibition against diesel-fueled trucks visiting state...more
11/8/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Air Quality Standards ,
Ballot Measures ,
California ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Environmental Policies ,
Incidental Take Permits ,
Infrastructure ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration ,
Waste Disposal ,
Water ,
Wildfires
California officials have been working on a plan to preserve the state’s leading edge environmental and climate policies, in the event that former President Donald J. Trump returns to the White House and follows through on...more
10/18/2024
/ California ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Policy ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Violations ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Infrastructure ,
Marine Life Protections ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pollution Control ,
SCOTUS ,
Settlement
ExxonMobil sued by California AG and environmental nonprofits over plastic waste -
California Attorney General Rob Bonta and a coalition of environmental nonprofit entities sued ExxonMobil on Monday, accusing the company...more
9/27/2024
/ California ,
Contamination ,
Department of Water Resources ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Violations ,
Exxon Mobil ,
Inland Waterways ,
New Legislation ,
Oil & Gas ,
Plastic Bag Bans ,
Pollution Control ,
Settlement ,
Water
Farmers in southern Tulare County will face greater scrutiny for groundwater pumping after the state placed the region on probation following a lengthy hearing in Sacramento on Tuesday....more
9/20/2024
/ California ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Farms ,
Groundwater ,
Infrastructure ,
Natural Resources ,
PFAS ,
State and Local Government ,
Water ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Water Rights ,
Water Supplies
Federal officials announced on Wednesday that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved a three-year-old rule — known as the Warehouse Indirect Source Rule (Rule) — targeting air pollution linked to Southern...more
9/13/2024
/ California ,
Class Action ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Energy Policy ,
Environmental Policies ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
Infrastructure ,
Offshore Drilling ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pollution Control ,
Wastewater
Three years after a massive spill at a Los Angeles wastewater facility sent millions of gallons of sewage into Santa Monica Bay, the city has agreed to spend more than $20 million on improvements to remedy the environmental...more
8/26/2024
/ Air Quality Standards ,
CARB ,
Contaminated Properties ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Violations ,
Fuel Standards ,
Infrastructure ,
Oil & Gas ,
Public Health ,
Reclamation ,
Refineries ,
U.S. Navy
Recent raging winter storms have caved in streets, wrecked piers, collapsed homes and apartment buildings, and submerged property up and down California’s coastline. As sea levels continue to rise from climate change,...more
8/19/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Biden Administration ,
California ,
Chevron ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Coastal Real Estate ,
Diesel Bans ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Infrastructure ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Rising Sea Levels
The city of Fresno announced this week that Shell USA, Dow Chemical, and other oil and chemical companies have agreed to pay the city $230 million to settle the city’s 2007 lawsuit against them for allegedly contaminating...more
8/9/2024
/ Biden Administration ,
Contamination ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Dow Chemical ,
Drinking Water ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Infrastructure ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pesticides ,
PFAS ,
Pipelines ,
Pollution Control ,
Public Health ,
Shell Oil ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Water Conservation
The U.S. Supreme Court today upended a 40-year-old decision that made it easier for the federal government to regulate the environment, public health, workplace safety, and consumer protections, delivering a far-reaching and...more
7/1/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
California ,
Chevron Deference ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
PFAS ,
Railways ,
SCOTUS ,
Toxic Exposure ,
Well Drilling
Plans to build the largest new reservoir in California in 50 years have taken a significant step forward following a judge’s decision last Friday to dismiss a lawsuit filed by environmental groups challenging the adequacy of...more
6/10/2024
/ California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
CEQA ,
Department of Toxic Substances Control ,
Energy Projects ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Industrial Discharges ,
NOAA ,
Toxic Exposure ,
Water Pollution ,
Water Quality
A coalition of 17 states led by Nebraska is suing California for creating ZEV standards for trucking fleets, saying the state’s rule violates the Constitution’s Commerce Clause. California’s Advanced Clean Fleets regulation,...more
5/20/2024
/ California ,
CARB ,
Commerce Clause ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Environmental Policies ,
Governor Newsom ,
Oil Wells ,
Orphan Wells ,
Salmon ,
Scientific Research ,
State Budgets ,
Trucking Industry ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Monday finalized tougher methane reporting standards that could increase the number of oil and gas companies that must pay fees for excess methane emissions....more
5/14/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Biden Administration ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Dams ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Flood Control ,
Flooding ,
Groundwater ,
Methane ,
NOAA ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Storm Water ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The Biden administration on Tuesday announced a goal to protect and restore 8 million acres of wetlands over the next six years in an effort to counter development pressures and recently weakened federal regulations. The new...more
4/29/2024
/ California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Water Act ,
Coal Mines ,
Dams ,
Department of the Interior ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
State and Local Government ,
Wetlands