Just two months into President Trump’s second term, project applicants are navigating a series of changes to U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (Corps) Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 404 permitting. Upon his inauguration, President...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 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
JULY WOTUS UPDATES: On July 12, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers sent a letter to top Republican lawmakers, confirming that the Corps...more
7/21/2023
/ Clean Water Act ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Inland Waterways ,
Navigable Waters ,
Regulatory Reform ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States ,
Wetlands
On June 26, 2023, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) announced their intent to amend the Biden administration’s January 2023 waters of the United States (WOTUS) rule and...more
6/29/2023
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Jurisdiction ,
Inland Waterways ,
Navigable Waters ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Sackett ,
Sackett v EPA ,
SCOTUS ,
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
From Executive Orders to court decisions, the environmental regulatory landscape seems to be changing from day to day. Many of the changes will increasingly have impacts on the timing, placement and cost of construction and...more
9/14/2022
/ Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act ,
Biden Administration ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Conservation ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Infrastructure ,
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) ,
NEPA ,
Permits ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
US Army Corps of Engineers
From Executive Orders to court decisions, the environmental regulatory landscape seems to be changing from day to day. Many of the changes will increasingly have impacts on the timing, placement and cost of construction and...more
8/12/2022
/ Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act ,
Biden Administration ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Conservation ,
Continuing Legal Education ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Infrastructure ,
Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA) ,
NEPA ,
Permits ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Webinars
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 September 3, 2021, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) announced the agencies’ will abandon the definition of Waters of the United States (WOTUS) set forth in the April 21,...more
9/7/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Navigable Waters ,
Navigable Waters Protection Rule ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Rulemaking Process ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States
On August 11, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit granted partial vacatur of an appeal brought by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) challenging a district court decision to vacate and enjoin use of...more
8/16/2021
/ Critical Habitat ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Keystone XL Pipeline ,
Motion To Enjoin ,
Nationwide Permits (NWPs) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Section 7 ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Vacatur ,
Waters of the United States
On December 3, 2020, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and other agencies (collectively, “Agencies”) announced an update to the standard Bank...more
12/28/2020
/ Clean Water Act ,
Comment Period ,
Construction Project ,
Environmental Policies ,
Mitigation ,
Real Estate Development ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Section 404 ,
State Department of Fish and Wildlife ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
Yesterday, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) appealed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit the decision of a lower court to vacate nationwide permit 12 (NWP 12) until the Corps completes...more
On Monday, the United States District Court for the District of Montana issued an order amending its previous order, which had invalidated nationwide permit 12 (NWP 12) on the basis that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers...more
On April 15, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the District of Montana issued an order that could impact energy and development projects across the United States. ...more