On March 4, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion in the case City and County of San Francisco v. Environmental Protection Agency, in which it held that “end-result” requirements routinely imposed by the U.S....more
Water is simple. Water issues are complex. To provide more clarity, we asked our attorneys who are committed to the water sector to identify the pivotal issues they’re watching now and for the year ahead. Their perspectives...more
5/20/2025
/ California ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Construction Contracts ,
Environmental Policies ,
Infrastructure ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Tariffs ,
Utilities Sector ,
Water ,
Water Quality ,
Water Supplies
On March 4, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion in the case City and County of San Francisco v. Environmental Protection Agency, in which it held that “end-result” requirements routinely imposed by the U.S....more
3/6/2025
/ Clean Water Act ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
NPDES ,
Permits ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
SCOTUS ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Water Quality ,
Waters of the United States
Updates to federal environmental and natural resource regulations and recent consequential decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court have resulted in a significant shift to the federal environmental and natural resource landscape...more
In January 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Agencies) adopted a final rule altering the definition of "waters of the United States" (WOTUS), a key term that is referred to...more
On September 27, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published its final rule to implement Clean Water Act (CWA) section 401 water quality certifications (2023 Rule). The 2023 Rule became effective on...more
On August 29, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) (collectively, the Agencies) released their amendment to January 2023 rule (January 2023 Rule) defining what...more
8/31/2023
/ Amended Rules ,
Biden Administration ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Inland Waterways ,
Navigable Waters ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sackett v EPA ,
Significant Nexus Test ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
In a 5-4 decision issued on May 25, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court narrowed the applicability of federal Clean Water Act regulatory authority over wetlands that have a relatively permanent connection to other federal waters....more
6/15/2023
/ Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Inland Waterways ,
Navigable Waters ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sackett ,
Sackett v EPA ,
SCOTUS ,
Significant Nexus Test ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
On November 18, 2021, The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) announced the availability of a pre-publication version of a proposed rule (Proposed Rule) to amend the definition of Waters...more
12/2/2021
/ Clean Water Act ,
Comment Period ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Inland Waterways ,
Navigable Waters ,
Navigable Waters Protection Rule ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
On August 30, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona vacated the April 2020 Navigable Waters Protection Rule in which the Trump Administration revised the definition of Waters of the United States (WOTUS)....more
In this episode of Digging Into Land Use Law, Nossaman Environment & Land Use partner Mary Lynn Coffee and associate Stephanie Clark explore the eternal question – at least under federal and California law – what’s in a...more
In the ever-shifting landscape of the Clean Water Act and Porter-Cologne jurisdiction, it can be difficult to determine whether you are engaging in activities that result in discharges of dredge, fill or pollutants to a Water...more
6/30/2020
/ Best Practices ,
Clean Water Act ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Dredge and Fill ,
Jurisdiction ,
Navigable Waters ,
Navigable Waters Protection Rule ,
New Guidance ,
New Regulations ,
Section 401 ,
State and Local Government ,
Waters of the United States ,
Webinars ,
Wetlands
Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a long-awaited decision in County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund et al., 590 U.S. __ (2020), in which it determined that the Clean Water Act (CWA) requirements for a National...more
4/30/2020
/ Appeals ,
Clean Water Act ,
Direct Discharge ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Violations ,
Functional Equivalent ,
Groundwater ,
Hawaii Wildlife Fund v County of Maui ,
Navigable Waters ,
Permits ,
Point Sources ,
Remand ,
SCOTUS ,
Vacated ,
Waters of the United States
In the ongoing saga of the Clean Water Act’s so-called “Waters of the United States” or WOTUS rule, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) announced changes to the definition of...more
4/28/2020
/ Clean Water Act ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Inland Waterways ,
Navigable Waters ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
This complimentary 60-minute webinar is focused on the State Water Resources Control Board's recently adopted State Wetlands Definition and Procedures for Discharges of Dredged or Fill Material to Waters of the State, with a...more
5/17/2019
/ CEQA ,
Clean Water Act ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Dredge and Fill ,
NEPA ,
Permits ,
Regulatory Standards ,
State and Local Government ,
Water ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Waters of the United States ,
Webinars ,
Wetlands
On December 11, 2018, in a move that follows on the heels of the litigation over the highly controversial 2015 move to redefine “waters of the United States” under the federal Clean Water Act, the U.S. EPA and the Army Corps...more
12/21/2018
/ Clean Water Act ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Inland Waterways ,
Navigable Waters ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Trump Administration ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
In a prior e-alert, we described the effort of the California State Water Resources Control Board (State Board) to develop a new regulatory program for discharge of dredged or fill materials to waters of the state. The...more
Debate and uncertainty regarding the extent of federal jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act will continue under the Executive Order.
On February 28, 2017, President Trump issued an Executive Order entitled “Restoring...more
3/20/2017
/ Clean Water Act ,
Deregulation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Navigable Waters ,
NPDES ,
Pending Legislation ,
Permits ,
Pollution Control ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States
Nossaman will host a complimentary half-day seminar comprised of panel discussions on a spectrum of critical federal and state environment and land use issues, including new federal rules implementing the Clean Water Act and...more
Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers ("USACE") released the final Clean Water Rule, which is intended to clarify regulatory confusion over which streams and wetlands...more
In 2007, Mingo Logan Coal Company received a Clean Water Act permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to discharge dredged or fill material from a mountain top coal mine in West Virginia into three...more
In a ruling that adds to the complexity of the federal regulatory landscape, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia held that the Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") has the authority to...more
On January 8, 2013, the United States Supreme Court reversed the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which had found that the owner and operator of a storm drain system and permittee under a federal Clean Water Act (CWA) Section...more