Key Points
- On Earth Day, the Biden-Harris administration announced a new target for the United States to achieve a 50 to 52 percent reduction in economy-wide GHG emissions by 2030, which constitutes the country’s new NDC...more
5/3/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Electricity ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDC) ,
NHTSA ,
Paris Agreement ,
Zero-Emission Vehicles
Key Points
- On Wednesday, March 10, 2021, the U.S. Senate confirmed Michael Regan as the next EPA Administrator.
- Although Regan and most of the Biden-Harris administration’s other high-level EPA officials have fairly...more
Late last week, the Justice Department withdrew nine Trump-era policy and guidance documents that shaped how the Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD) enforced environmental law during the past...more
Last week’s “Climate Day” actions grabbed headlines primarily for how they respond to climate risk through increased federal coordination. Equally important may be the actions the Biden administration took that day to combat...more
As we previewed yesterday morning, January 27 was the Biden administration’s “Climate Day.”
Yesterday’s actions—two executive orders and a presidential memorandum—provided further detail on the President’s roadmap for...more
Key Points
- President Biden’s Day One Executive Order on climate action reconvenes an interagency working group to establish interim and final social costs of three GHGs: carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and methane.
-...more
1/28/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Climate Change ,
Department of the Interior ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
FERC ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Legislative Agendas ,
NEPA ,
Net Zero ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Working Groups
President Trump issued an Executive Order on Regulatory Relief to Support Economic Recovery on May 19. Generally, the Order directs federal agencies to respond to the COVID-19 crisis by “rescinding, modifying, waiving, or...more
The U.S. Supreme Court clarified that the scope of federal protection under the Clean Water Act includes any “functional equivalent” of a direct discharge to navigable waters from a point source. The Court’s decision is the...more
4/27/2020
/ Appeals ,
Clean Water Act ,
Direct Discharge ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Functional Equivalent ,
Groundwater ,
Hawaii Wildlife Fund v County of Maui ,
Navigable Waters ,
Permits ,
Point Sources ,
Remand ,
SCOTUS ,
Vacated ,
Waters of the United States
On April 10, 2020, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA or the Agency) Office of Land and Emergency Management and Office of Enforcement and Compliance Assurance issued Interim Guidance to EPA’s Regional Offices...more
- Effective March 12, 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice is no longer including supplemental environmental projects (“SEPs”) in the settlement of civil enforcement actions brought by the U.S. Environmental Protection...more
In response to requests for leniency as companies grapple with reduced workforces during the COVID-19 crisis, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a temporary policy announcing that it will exercise...more
Key Points
- House Democrats have released draft text for the CLEAN Future Act, a comprehensive climate bill that aims to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas pollution throughout the United States by 2050 by directing federal...more
2/10/2020
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Paris Agreement ,
PFAS ,
Proposed Legislation ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Trump Administration
On June 7, 2019, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued updated guidance to “clarify and provide recommendations concerning the implementation of” Section 401 of the Clean Water Act (CWA), which could have...more
6/20/2019
/ Certification Requirements ,
Certifications ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Coal Industry ,
Department of Environmental Conservation ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Executive Orders ,
Guidance Update ,
Oil & Gas ,
Section 401 ,
Trump Administration ,
Water Quality
After decades of insisting otherwise and before the U.S. Supreme Court has had a chance to rule on the issue, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) took steps to limit its interpretation of the Clean Water Act’s...more
6/4/2019
/ Clean Water Act ,
Comment Period ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Groundwater ,
Jurisdiction ,
Navigable Waters ,
NPDES ,
Permits ,
Point Sources ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Statutory Interpretation
On March 22, 2019, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will begin to implement its own formaldehyde emission standards as required under the Formaldehyde Standards for Composite Wood Products Act, Title VI to the...more
On December 3, 2018, the Supreme Court of the United States issued an order requesting the Solicitor General to weigh in on a case related to the legal status of some types of groundwater. The catch? The Court’s order comes...more
On September 21, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit issued an expedited mandate to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), forcing the agency to reinstate several provisions of its...more
On September 11, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a proposed rule to amend various provisions of a key Obama-era regulation that sought to reduce methane emissions from oil and natural gas...more
9/13/2018
/ Amended Regulation ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Methane ,
Natural Gas ,
New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) ,
Oil & Gas ,
Proposed Rules ,
Public Comment ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rollbacks
On August 17, 2018, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit vacated a rule that delayed the effective date of the 2017 Risk Management Program (RMP) Rule amendments issued by the U.S....more
9/12/2018
/ Amended Rules ,
Appeals ,
Clean Air Act ,
Delays ,
Emergency Response ,
Enforcement ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Proposed Rules ,
Risk Management ,
Safety Precautions ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Vacated
On Tuesday, August 21, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced its Affordable Clean Energy (ACE) Rule, a proposal to replace the Clean Power Plan issued in 2015. EPA Acting Administrator Andrew Wheeler...more
8/23/2018
/ Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Clean Power Plan ,
Coal-Fired Generation ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Natural Gas ,
Oil & Gas ,
Power Plants ,
Proposed Rules ,
Renewable Energy
On Thursday, August 2, 2018, the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) jointly proposed a rule to freeze the fuel...more
8/3/2018
/ Automotive Industry ,
Clean Air Act ,
Department of Transportation (DOT) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Fuel Standards ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Manufacturers ,
Motor Vehicles ,
NHTSA ,
Oil & Gas ,
Proposed Rules
On July 30, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will host a workshop to engage stakeholders in a discussion surrounding the development of a study of the economic impacts of compliance with the North American...more
7/19/2018
/ Air Pollution ,
Diesel Fuel ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Register ,
Maritime Transport ,
Oil & Gas ,
Operating Costs ,
Pollution Control ,
Ports ,
Shipping ,
Stakeholder Engagement ,
Vessels
On May 9, 2018, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Scott Pruitt issued a memorandum outlining a “back-to-basics” process for reviewing National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for criteria...more
Earlier this week, on April 30, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) quietly modified its source determination test that is used to determine whether emissions from nearby and closely related sources should be...more
5/7/2018
/ Air Pollution ,
Clean Air Act ,
Department of Environmental Protection ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Landfills ,
Oil & Gas ,
Permits ,
Separate Entity Rule ,
Source Determination Rule ,
Title V
On April 30, 2018, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published in the Federal Register a controversial proposed rule seeking to restrict the types of scientific research and findings that the EPA can consider in...more
5/2/2018
/ Confidential Information ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Federal Register ,
Non-Public Information ,
Proposed Rules ,
Proprietary Information ,
Public Health ,
Rulemaking Process ,
Safe Drinking Water Act ,
Scientific Research ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) ,
Transparency