The U.S. Supreme Court, on May 25, 2023, narrowed the reach of the Clean Water Act, in the latest judicial effort to define the “waters of the United States” that Congress intended to regulate. Sackett v. Environmental...more
In a notable decision interpreting the California Endangered Species Act (CESA), a California court of appeal ruled that insects are eligible for listing as threatened, endangered, or candidate species under the act. See...more
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the National Marine Fisheries Service on December 16, 2020, jointly adopted a final regulation providing a one-sentence definition for the term “habitat” under the Endangered Species...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit has issued an important decision that narrowly interprets the types of governmental decisions that may be challenged in court as “final agency action.” In California Communities...more
8/28/2019
/ Administrative Proceedings ,
Air Pollution ,
Clean Air Act ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Government Agencies ,
National Emissions Standards ,
New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) ,
Policy Memorandums ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
US Army Corps of Engineers
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Marine Fisheries Service issued a set of three new final rules on August 12, 2019, that substantially revise the regulations implementing the Endangered Species Act. The new...more
Late last week, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service withdrew two environmental policies adopted in late 2016 by the Obama administration that address mitigation for impacts to natural resources. These two policies established...more
8/2/2018
/ Bureau of Land Management ,
Conservation ,
Critical Habitat ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
FLPMA ,
Mitigation ,
NEPA ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued a guidance memorandum addressing when an incidental take permit may be needed under Section 10(a)(1)(B) of the Endangered Species Act for projects that modify habitat of federally...more
As reported in our prior Update, in a decision issued on January 22, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in National Association of Manufacturers v. Department of Defense, 138 S. Ct. 617, that challenges to the Obama...more
4/5/2018
/ Appeals ,
Clean Water Act ,
Clean Water Rule ,
Delays ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
National Association of Manufacturers v DOD ,
Navigable Waters ,
Preliminary Injunctions ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States
In Friends of the College of San Mateo Gardens v. San Mateo County Community College District (Supreme Court No. S214061, filed Sept. 19, 2016), the California Supreme Court resolved the vexing question of whether a change to...more
9/29/2016
/ Addendums ,
CA Supreme Court ,
CEQA ,
Colleges ,
Construction Industry ,
Construction Project ,
Educational Institutions ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Real Estate Development ,
Renovations
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit last week rejected a claim under the National Environmental Policy Act that the Navy did not adequately consider the environmental consequences of a potential terrorist threat...more
President Barack Obama recently ordered the heads of five federal agencies (U.S. Department of Defense, U.S. Department of Interior, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and National Oceanic...more
On March 25, 2014, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers jointly released a proposed rule to define those waters that fall under the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act as “waters of the United...more
The prolonged controversy over the Clean Water Act’s reach may be coming to a dramatic head. On September 17, 2013, the Environmental Protection Agency announced the release of a draft scientific report finding that all of...more