Rewriting the Rules: The Supreme Court's Landmark Decision on Clean Water Act Permits
H2-OWOW! – A Reflective Conversation with John Goodin, Former Director of EPA’s Office of Wetlands, Oceans, and Watersheds – Reflections on Water Podcast
Reflections on Sackett - Reflections on Water Podcast
On-Demand Webinar | Linear Infrastructure Redux: Adapting Your Projects to Meet the New Regulatory Climate
The intricacies of the Waters of the U.S. (WOTUS) definition continue to evolve, especially with recent changes initiated under the Trump administration and landmark clarifications from the Supreme Court's Sackett v. EPA...more
The Trump administration’s strategy regarding the scope of the “waters of the United States,” which defines the geographic jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act, is coming into focus, but true clarity appears a long way off. ...more
On April 9, 2025, President Trump directed federal agencies to repeal certain categories of regulations in his memorandum entitled Directing the Repeal of Unlawful Regulations (“Memorandum”). In this Memorandum, President...more
“Environmental Vanguard” is a quarterly newsletter from McGuireWoods, sharing key insights from our leading environmental attorneys and consultants at the forefront of regulatory, litigation, and policy developments. This...more
On Monday, March 24, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (the “EPA”) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the “Corps”) issued a Federal Register Notice soliciting stakeholder feedback concerning the implementation...more
The Agency Is Looking to Sackett v. EPA for a More ‘Durable’ Definition - From Obama to Trump to Biden, each of the last three administrations has directed the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) to...more
On March 12, 2025, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency issued a Federal Register notice stating their intent to review the definition of “waters of the United States” (“WOTUS”), which...more
On March 24, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (together, the Agencies) announced plans to engage stakeholders in the Trump administration’s latest effort to pare back...more
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
On February 29, 2025, President Trump issued an executive order requiring agencies to identify suspect regulations for regulatory roll back within 60 days. ...more
Welcome to the November edition of Nutter's Environment & Energy Insights, a monthly update of current trends in environment and energy law. What a Second Trump Presidency Could Mean for Massachusetts' Energy and Environment...more
When EPA published its most recent rule specifying the role of States and Tribes in the Federal permitting of discharges into Waters of the United States, I predicted it was only a matter of time before we'd see another...more
As a result of the North Carolina Farm Act of 2023 (Session Law 2023-63), North Carolina’s Department of Environmental Quality (NCDEQ or the Department) may now only regulate wetlands that are subject to federal Clean Water...more
I'm surprised to see the Biden Administration EPA moving forward right now with a rule proposed during the Trump Administration to allow states to take over responsibility for the permitting of "dredge and fill" activities...more
On December 30, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (collectively Agencies) announced the issuance of a final rule defining “waters of the United States” (WOTUS), a key...more
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rulemaking on Jan. 18, 2023, revising the definition of "Waters of the United States" (WOTUS) within the Corps1 and...more
More changes are ahead for entities seeking federal authorization for projects that may impact waters of the United States. On June 9, 2022, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) published a proposed rule that would...more
THE CLEAN WATER ACT AND SECTION 401 - In 1948, Congress passed the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) as the first rendition of a law intended to address growing pollution of American waters. By 1972, increased...more
Twenty-two agricultural organizations submitted February 7th comments to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and Army Corps of Engineers (“Corps”) addressing the federal agencies’ joint proposed rule to...more
Like everything else today, the definition of “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) under the Clean Water Act (CWA) ebbs and flows depending on which political party holds office. However, while the Biden Administration gets...more
Once again, developers and other interested parties are grappling with yet another District Court decision regarding the definition of Waters of the United States. On August 30, 2021, the Federal District of Arizona vacated...more
On August 30, 2021, the United States District Court for the District of Arizona issued an order vacating the Navigable Waters Protection Rule and remanding the rule back to U.S. EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) announced on Aug. 4, 2021, the start of a long anticipated rulemaking process to revise the regulatory definition of "waters of the U.S."...more
The United States Environmental Protection Agency and Corps of Engineers (collectively “Corps”) issued a July 30th news release announcing plans for: . . . upcoming community engagements to inform their efforts to revise the...more