When a source seeks an air permit, one of its biggest questions is often: how exacting must my emissions controls be? The Clean Air Act answers that question through several technology-based standards, each with different...more
On April 10, 2026, U.S. EPA proposed to redesignate the Cleveland, Ohio area to attainment for the 2015 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) (the Proposed Rule) – an action that, if finalized, will facilitate...more
On Feb. 17, the Eastern District of Michigan held, after a bench trial, that indirect parent companies of EES Coke Battery LLC (EES Coke) are strictly liable as 'operators' for Clean Air Act violations at EES Coke’s facility....more
On January 14, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upheld the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality’s (TCEQ’s) decision to grant a third New Source Review (NSR) construction commencement deadline...more
On January 21, 2026, the House Committee on Energy and Commerce reported a package of bills that, if enacted, would constitute the most significant amendments to the Clean Air Act (CAA) since 1990....more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has expressed its intent to propose a rule to revise the regulatory definition of “begin actual construction” under the Clean Air Act’s (CAA) New Source Review (NSR)...more
The Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) recent Clean Air Act initiatives are creating opportunities for data center and industrial project developers, particularly related to activities surrounding preconstruction and...more
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) issued a September 2nd interpretive letter addressing the definition of “Begin Actual Construction” in the Clean Air Act New Source Review (“NSR”) regulations....more
The New Source Review (“NSR”) Program under the Clean Air Act (“CAA”) requires new major stationary sources and existing major stationary sources making major modifications to undergo permitting prior to beginning...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has announced plans to propose, by 2026, a rule revising the definition of “begin actual construction” under the Clean Air Act’s (CAA) New Source Review (NSR) regulations. ...more
In support of the administration’s efforts to facilitate the development of data centers, on September 15, 2025, US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin announced at a White House artificial...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has expressed plans to revise its rules for New Source Review (NSR) permitting under the Clean Air Act, commonly known as preconstruction permitting. In a September 2, 2025 guidance...more
On September 9, 2025, EPA announced new guidance on New Source Review (NSR) pre-construction permitting requirements that broadens the types of activities that can be undertaken prior to obtaining an air permit. The guidance...more
The Environmental Defense Fund, Environmental Integrity Project, Natural Resources Defense Council, and Sierra Club (collectively, “EDF”) filed in the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit an...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (“Fifth Circuit”) addressed in an August 12th Decision a challenge to a Clean Air Act Prevention of Significant Deterioration (“PSD”) Permit issued by the Texas...more
Under the Clean Air Act, sources frequently must undergo “New Source Review” (NSR) permitting, which is a pre-construction permitting program. NSR establishes requirements for new or modified sources prior to initiating...more
The Waste-to-Energy Association (“WTEA”) submitted July 1st comments to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) addressing the proposed rule styled: Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) and...more
New guidance from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) sheds light on how the agency intends to incorporate environmental justice (“EJ”)1 into air permitting programs across the country. The direct effect of the...more
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) stated in a November16th letter that an oil refinery on St. Croix in the U.S. Virgin Islands may not resume operations without going through New Source Review (“NSR”)....more
On October 14, 2022, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed changes to its New Source Review (NSR) regulations that would expand the number of projects that trigger NSR permitting at existing facilities by...more
Four years ago, EPA published its “Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) and Nonattainment New Source Review (NNSR): Aggregation; Reconsideration” (New Source Review (NSR) Aggregation Action). 83 Fed. Reg. 57324...more
The 8th Circuit Court of Appeals has largely affirmed a District Court order finding that Ameren Missouri violated the NSR provisions of the Clean Air Act in making major modifications to its Rush Island facility. The...more
On March 5, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit denied a challenge to a more than decade-old EPA rule related to the records that source owners must keep in order to support claims that certain of their activities...more
The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) announced on October 22nd it had finalized certain New Source Review (“NSR”) regulations associated with the Clean Air Act Prevention of Significant Deterioration...more