In a settlement approved by the San Diego Regional Water Quality Control Board on November 13, the City of Oceanside agreed to pay a $1.5 million fine for two separate spills that sent raw sewage into the Buena Vista Creek...more
11/25/2024
/ Agricultural Land ,
California ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
State and Local Government ,
Toxic Spills ,
Union Pacific ,
Water Quality Control Boards ,
Water Supplies
Farmers in southern Tulare County will face greater scrutiny for groundwater pumping after the state placed the region on probation following a lengthy hearing in Sacramento on Tuesday....more
9/20/2024
/ California ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Farms ,
Groundwater ,
Infrastructure ,
Natural Resources ,
PFAS ,
State and Local Government ,
Water ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Water Rights ,
Water Supplies
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
8/30/2024
/ California ,
Dams ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Groundwater ,
Landfills ,
Lead ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
Salmon ,
SCAQMD ,
Water Quality Control Boards
Climate change threatens to dramatically shrink the amount of water California can deliver over the next 20 years and could significantly reduce supplies available from the State Water Project according to new projections...more
8/5/2024
/ Agricultural Land ,
California ,
CARB ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Water Resources ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Governor Newsom ,
Groundwater ,
Landfills ,
Reclamation ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
In an order filed Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle denied a private property owner’s effort to enjoin the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers from enforcing their September 2023...more
6/24/2024
/ California ,
DTSC ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Fees ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Sackett v EPA ,
State and Local Government ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Waters of the United States
Republican attorneys general from 20 U.S. states sued the Biden administration on Tuesday, seeking to block new reforms to the U.S. environmental review process for major projects such as transmission lines and wind and solar...more
5/28/2024
/ Biden Administration ,
California ,
Department of Environmental Quality ,
Drought ,
Energy Projects ,
Farm Bureau ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
NEPA ,
State and Local Government ,
Water Rights ,
Wildlife Protection
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Monday finalized tougher methane reporting standards that could increase the number of oil and gas companies that must pay fees for excess methane emissions....more
5/14/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Biden Administration ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Dams ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Flood Control ,
Flooding ,
Groundwater ,
Methane ,
NOAA ,
Reporting Requirements ,
Storm Water ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
A coalition of conservation groups filed a petition on Tuesday asking the California Fish and Game Commission to protect burrowing owl populations in five parts of the state including parts of the Bay Area and the Central...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“Corps”) on Tuesday released a new rule that reduces the number of federally protected waters by more than half following a Supreme Court...more
9/5/2023
/ California ,
Cemex ,
Contamination ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Forest Service ,
Groundwater ,
PFAS ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Water Pollution ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Waters of the United States
In the nation’s first appellate case on the issue, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday ruled that the City and County of San Francisco (City) must meet limits set by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for...more
8/7/2023
/ Air Pollution ,
California ,
Diesel Fuel ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Inland Waterways ,
Pesticides ,
Pollution Control ,
State and Local Government ,
Toxic Chemicals
3M announced on Thursday that it has reached a $10.3 billion settlement with many U.S. public water systems to resolve water pollution claims tied to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, commonly known as “PFAS.”...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is considering expanding the number of per- and polyfluoroalklyl substances (PFAS) compounds classified as “hazardous substances” under the Comprehensive Environmental Response,...more
4/24/2023
/ California ,
CERCLA ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
PFAS ,
State and Local Government ,
State Bans ,
Storm Water ,
Wetlands
U.S. Supreme Court leans toward limiting scope of Clean Water Act - U.S. News & World Report – October 3 - U.S. Supreme Court justices on October 3 appeared open to limiting the reach of the U.S. Environmental Protection...more
U.S. Supreme Court leans toward limiting scope of Clean Water Act - U.S. News & World Report – October 3 - U.S. Supreme Court justices on October 3 appeared open to limiting the reach of the U.S. Environmental Protection...more
In last year’s Land Use, Environmental & Natural Resources Update 2021 Update, we reported on the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in County of Maui v. Hawai’i Wildlife Fund (County of Maui), 590 U.S. __; 140 S. Ct. 2778 (2020),...more
Biden administration acts to restore clean-water safeguards -
Associated Press – November 18 -
The Biden administration took action this Thursday to restore federal protections for hundreds of thousands of small streams,...more
11/19/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Infrastructure ,
Liquid Natural Gas ,
PFAS ,
PHMSA ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Waters of the United States
EPA outlines $630M plan to curtail Tijuana sewage pollution in San Diego -
Los Angeles Times – November 9 -
Top federal environmental regulators in California on Monday laid out a $630 million plan to capture and...more
Federal judge strikes down Trump rule governing water pollution -
The New York Times – August 23 -
In the latest episode of a long-running battle concerning the reach of federal jurisdiction over surface waters, Judge...more
9/3/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Water Act ,
Contaminated Properties ,
Drought ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Oil & Gas ,
Water Pollution ,
Water Supplies ,
Waters of the United States
Lawsuit alleges lax groundwater oversight in Sonoma County threatens Russian River -
The Press Democrat – July 7 -
An environmental group, California Coastkeeper, is suing Sonoma County over permitting policies it...more
New EPA rule aims to limit tough clean air measures under Biden -
The New York Times – December 9 -
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) this Wednesday completed a rule that could weaken federal authority to...more
12/11/2020
/ Air Pollution ,
Bureau of Land Management ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Draft Guidance ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Hawaii Wildlife Fund v County of Maui ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pollution Control ,
Regulatory Reform ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service
White House directs agencies to relax enforcement -
Los Angeles Times – September 9 -
A memorandum produced by the White House Office of Management and Budget and sent to federal agency heads last week instructs them to...more
9/11/2020
/ Bureau of Land Management ,
Critical Habitat ,
Department of the Interior ,
Deregulation ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Enforcement Guidance ,
Environmental Policies ,
Farms ,
Groundwater ,
Infrastructure ,
Mineral Extraction ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pipelines ,
Trump Administration ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Water ,
Water Supplies
Contaminated groundwater plume in north Orange County placed on federal Superfund list -
Orange County Register – September 1 -
A five-square-mile plume of contaminated groundwater in north Orange County has been...more
9/4/2020
/ Contaminated Properties ,
Department of Toxic Substances Control ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Free Trade Agreements ,
Governor Newsom ,
Groundwater ,
NEPA ,
NHTSA ,
PFAS ,
Site Remediation ,
Superfund ,
Trump Administration ,
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) ,
Wastewater ,
Water Supplies
Congress sends landmark conservation bill to White House -
Bullet The New York Times – July 22 -
The U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday passed a measure that, for the first time, guarantees maximum annual funding...more
7/24/2020
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Monsanto ,
Paris Agreement ,
Popular ,
Public Land ,
RCRA ,
Trump Administration ,
Water ,
Water Quality ,
Water Resources Control Board
California sues Trump administration to block water rules -
Bullet ABC News – February 20 -
California sued the Trump administration on Thursday to block new rules finalized this week that would let farmers take more...more
2/21/2020
/ Air Pollution ,
Contaminated Properties ,
Drinking Water ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Pesticides ,
PFAS ,
Pollution Control ,
Superfund ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Trump Administration
Governor Newsom proposes new plan for San Joaquin River Delta -
Governor Gavin Newsom revealed a novel approach Tuesday to managing the San Joaquin River Delta that would keep more water in the fragile delta while restoring...more
2/10/2020
/ Clean Air Act ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Assessments ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Funding ,
Groundwater ,
NEPA ,
OIG ,
Rivers ,
State Water Boards ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Waste Treatment Facilities ,
Wastewater ,
Water ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Water Supplies