Good morning! This is Akin’s newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from the past week and forthcoming climate-related events and hearings...more
On 15 July 2024, “Regulation (EU) 2024/1787 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 on the reduction of methane emissions in the energy sector and amending Regulation (EU) 2019/942” (the “EU Methane...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
The Environmental Protection Agency intends to issue a rule updating its Clean Air Act emission standards for new and existing municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills to cut methane and other harmful landfill gas emissions....more
On July 9, 2024, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (“D.C. Circuit”) declined to stay a new Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) rule that seeks to limit methane emissions in the oil...more
Final Rules for Prevailing Wage & Registered Apprenticeships at Clean Energy Projects - The Department of the Treasury and Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently announced final rules implementing the prevailing wage and...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on June 21, 2024, released a $850 million Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) to reduce methane emissions from oil and natural gas...more
The Biden-Harris Administration recently issued a suite of new rules aimed at addressing water and air quality, reducing methane emissions, protecting environmental justice communities, and accelerating the nation’s...more
Antitrust and Competition - The European Commission Approves Plan to Unwind a Completed Transaction in the Early Cancer Detection Sector - On 12 April 2024, the European Commission (Commission) approved the plan to unwind a...more
The Inflation Reduction Act (“IRA”) gave the federal government new authority to “tackle” the problem of methane emissions. On May 6, 2024, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) issued final revisions to...more
Recently, there’s been much discussion about the potential benefits that artificial intelligence can bring to climate change regulation. For example, advanced technology, such as satellite data, is being used to identify...more
The Council of the European Union adopted a regulation on the reduction of methane emissions in the energy sector (Regulation). Methane is the second-biggest cause of climate change after carbon dioxide, and in the short term...more
On May 14, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published the final Greenhouse Gas Reporting Rule requirements for petroleum and natural gas systems under 40 C.F.R. Part 98, Subpart W in the Federal Register....more
This week, we discuss a downward revision to electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla Inc.’s governance grade and the equally controversial topic of diverging ESG ratings methodologies. Investigative findings published in May this...more
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
After much anticipation, the Environmental Protection Agency issued its final rule this week aimed at cutting methane emissions as well as strengthening and updating greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) reporting for the oil and...more
Good afternoon! This is Akin’s newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from the past two weeks and forthcoming climate-related events and...more
Here are curated AG and federal regulatory news stories highlighting key areas in which state and federal regulators’ decisions are having an impact across the US: •FTC’s Report Focuses on Collaboration with State Attorneys...more
Oil and gas companies will soon be required to pay annual fees to the federal government based on their methane emissions. These fees, which the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) expects will exceed $2 billion over the...more
The Biden administration issued a final rule this Wednesday aimed at curbing methane leaks from oil and gas drilling on federal and tribal lands. Adoption of the rule is its latest action to crack down on emissions of...more
On March 4, 2024, MethaneSat, a satellite developed by a subsidiary of the Environmental Defense Fund that will locate and quantify methane emissions from oil and gas operations, was launched into orbit. According to the...more
A stream of judicial decisions in the pipeline will have important implications for the energy industry. The three cases discussed below are among those that energy litigators and industry professionals are watching in 2024....more
Good afternoon! This is Akin’s newsletter on climate change policy and regulatory developments, providing information on major climate policy headlines from the past week and forthcoming climate-related events and hearings...more
Here are curated AG and federal regulatory news stories highlighting key areas in which state and federal regulators’ decisions are having an impact across the US: •Wisconsin Shows Timeshare Exit Company the Exit - ...more