The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (together, the Agencies) issued a straight-to-final-rule revised definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) on August 29, 2023. This...more
On May 25, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Sackett v. EPA, No. 21-454, holding that Clean Water Act (CWA) jurisdiction extends to wetlands only if they have a continuous surface connection to...more
On December 30, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) announced a final rule once again updating the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) and,...more
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) recently published notice that it is initiating a formal review of Nationwide Permit (NWP) 12 a little over a year after its latest iteration took effect. NWP 12, which serves as a...more
On January 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) granted review of Sackett v. EPA, apparently with the sole purpose of deciding once and for all “the proper test for determining whether wetlands are ‘waters of the United...more
In a recent decision, a federal judge in Arizona vacated the Trump Administration’s Navigable Waters Protection Rule (NWPR) and remanded the rulemaking back to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of...more
Over the past week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced plans to undo the Trump administration’s Navigable Waters Protection Rule, and take the Biden administration’s next...more
On February 11, 2021, the Ninth Circuit upheld the district court’s decision vacating Nationwide Permit (NWP) 48, Commercial Shellfish Mariculture Activities, in Washington State. As previously discussed, industry appealed...more
In yet another setback for the Army Corps of Engineers’ Nationwide Permit program, a June 11, 2020 federal court ruling vacated NWP 48 for commercial shellfish aquaculture in Washington State. Center for Food Safety v. U.S....more
On Thursday, June 4, 2020, President Trump signed an Executive Order (EO) on “Accelerating the Nation’s Economic Recovery from the COVID-19 Emergency by Expediting Infrastructure Investments and Other Activities.” Relying on...more
In an order with serious and immediate national implications for the construction of pipelines, electrical lines, fiber optic cable, and other utility projects, a Montana federal court has vacated Clean Water Act (CWA)...more
On January 23, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers finalized a long-awaited new rule redefining the term “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) under the Clean Water Act (CWA). The Agencies...more
On June 7, 2019, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued nonbinding guidance clarifying and providing recommendations regarding the implementation of Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. § 1341. Most...more
On April 10, 2019, President Trump signed two executive orders intended to address a range of legal and procedural hurdles commonly facing infrastructure projects, particularly in the energy sector. Most notably, the...more
On December 11, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers (the “agencies”) announced once again that they are proposing a new rule to redefine the scope of waters and wetlands subject to...more
In a memorandum issued earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) clarified how a policy prohibiting settlement payments to third parties, announced in June 2017, will apply in cases handled by DOJ’s...more
In a unanimous opinion, the Supreme Court today held that lawsuits challenging the 2015 rule amending the definition of waters of the United States (WOTUS Rule) under the Clean Water Act (CWA) must be brought in federal...more
The Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers announced yesterday that the implementation of President Trump’s executive order directing EPA and the Corps to replace the Clean Water Rule will be a two-step...more
A few months ago, we (and most everyone else not working at the Justice Department) predicted that the Supreme Court would rule that property owners seeking to develop potential federal wetlands on their property may...more
Perhaps it is poetic justice. The litigation over the final Waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule is as disjointed and confusing as the rule itself. Following a key court ruling yesterday, the WOTUS rule is now...more
The Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers (“the agencies”) have issued the long-awaited final rule to define the scope of waters and wetlands subject to federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act...more