The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will lead an investigation into the Tijuana-U.S. cross-border sewage crisis, measuring the potential health impacts on people who live and work near where millions of gallons of...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
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
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce, California Chamber of Commerce, American Farm Bureau Federation, and other groups sued California on Tuesday in federal court over the most sweeping climate disclosure mandates in the nation,...more
On March 26, 2021, Southern District of Florida District Court Judge Cecilia Altonaga denied a motion to dismiss an antitrust class action alleging a conspiracy to fix the price of farm-raised Atlantic salmon globally....more
I first saw Grand Coulee Dam as a 10-year old. My family and I were on our way to Spokane, Washington to attend Expo ’74, officially titled the “International Exposition on the Environment.” Expo ’74 was notable for being the...more
AquaBounty Technologies’ path to the U.S. market for its genetically engineered (GE) salmon has been a long one. In 2015, the FDA approved AquaBounty’s application to create and farm its GE salmon (trade name, AquAdvantage)...more
L E G I S L A T I O N , R E G U L A T I O N S & S T A N D A R D S - FDA Issues Guidance On “Potassium Chloride Salt” - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued draft guidance for industry on the use of...more
When it rains, it pours—and for the country’s largest protein producers, the downpour is coming in the form of high-profile antitrust lawsuits. Over the past few years, food giants like Tyson and JBS (majority owner of...more
LEGISLATION, REGULATIONS & STANDARDS - FDA Lifts Import Alert on GE Salmon - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has deactivated an import alert that prevented the introduction of genetically engineered (GE)...more
On March 8, 2019, U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., released a statement on the continued efforts to advance safe biotechnology innovations, and the deactivation of an import alert on...more
The Federal Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit recently affirmed a district court order requiring that the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Corps of Engineers, and the Bureau of Reclamation conduct spill operations...more
On October 23, in another case that turned on the reviewing court’s authority to review an administrative action, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia held that the petitioners, having failed to raise their...more
A pair of court developments in the Western District of Washington place pressure on EPA and the Washington Department of Ecology to issue new water standards for temperature, sediment, and ammonia to protect salmon in...more
LEGISLATION, REGULATIONS & STANDARDS - Mass. Governor Vetoes Raw Milk Bill - Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker has vetoed a state environmental bond bill containing a provision that would allow raw milk sales at farm...more
All three branches of the federal government had a busy spring. The U.S. Supreme Court just completed its 2017 term in June with a full-strength bench after spending much of the previous term with only eight justices after...more
In most instances, a tie means there is no winner and no loser. Not so with the U.S. Supreme Court’s 4-4 tie in the “Culverts Case” (one branch of the sprawling U.S. v. Washington case) on June 11, 2018. Instead, by...more
Potential Implications for Northwest Regulators and Private Parties - On June 11, 2018, an equally divided United States Supreme Court affirmed per curiam the Ninth Circuit’s decision in United States v. Washington, known...more
On June 11, the Supreme Court issued a one-sentence order affirming the Ninth Circuit’s 2016 judgment in United States v. State of Washington. In that case, the federal government sued Washington on behalf of several Indian...more
Today the United States Supreme Court issued a 4-4 per curiam decision (Justice Kennedy was recused) affirming the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit’s decision in the Culverts case, which is the latest...more
On April 2, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court order directing that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and U.S. Bureau of...more
Cooke Aquaculture Fined $332,000 For Puget Sound Salmon Pen Collapse - The Washington Department of Ecology has reportedly fined Cooke Aquaculture $332,000 for violations of state water quality laws related to a net pen...more
Environmental and Policy Focus - Key legislative vote could force tech billionaire to sell public route to beach - San Jose Mercury News - Aug 30 - Lawmakers in Sacramento are considering a bill that could clear...more
As plant-based beverages appear on more store shelves, the definition of “milk” has become the center of a dispute involving legislatures, regulators, litigators and industry groups. Shook Partners Katie Gates Calderon and...more
GE Salmon Bill Introduced in U.S. Senate - A bipartisan group of U.S. senators has introduced a bill that would require labeling of genetically engineered (GE) salmon and independent scientific review of the U.S. Food and...more