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
California stands at a pivotal juncture in 2025, confronting an array of environmental and housing challenges. As usual, the California State Legislature is considering numerous strategies to address these issues. This year’s...more
California’s regulatory authority over “waters of the state” continues to grow even as the federal definition of “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) narrows under shifting legal and regulatory frameworks. In Sackett v. EPA...more
On June 10, 2025, the Washington Department of Ecology (“Ecology”) published a CR-101 Preproposal Statement of Inquiry to develop a new permitting program for projects that could “alter” or “impact” waters of the state. The...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
The Association of Clean Water Administrators (“ACWA”) submitted May 15th comments to the Untied States Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers ( collectively, “EPA”) regarding potential revisions to...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
More than 50 years ago, the Federal Clean Water Act (CWA or Act) was enacted by Congress to protect the quality of the Nation’s waters. The scope of that protection has been evolving ever since. Until relatively recently, the...more
A group of 18 Republican AGs and the Arizona legislature submitted a comment letter in response to the EPA’s request for feedback on the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS), which determines which water bodies...more
The landscape of coastal real estate development in North Carolina has undergone a seismic shift following major regulatory changes over the last few years. For developers eyeing coastal properties, understanding the...more
The California legislature continues to advance Senate Bill 601 (SB 601), the “Right to Clean Water Act,” which aims to safeguard protections for California’s streams and wetlands that lost federal protection under the Clean...more
As referenced in last month’s publication, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of the Army (Army) will be hosting numerous separate listening sessions with key stakeholders starting next...more
Beginning on April 29, 2025, the EPA will hold a series of six listening sessions to receive input from stakeholders on key topics related to the regulation of “waters of the United States” (or “WOTUS”) in the wake of the...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
The Environmental Protection Agency announced March 10 it will be revising the definition for the Waters of the United States Rule (WOTUS). In a news release it said, “[t]he agencies will move quickly to ensure that a revised...more
In its recent decision in San Francisco v. EPA, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a Ninth Circuit interpretation of the Clean Water Act (“CWA”), the second case in just two years where the Court has disagreed with the EPA’s...more
On March 4, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a ruling that prohibits the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA” or “the Agency”) from setting qualitative limits based on the condition of the “receiving waters” that...more
The Supreme Court of the United States issued one decision today: City and County of San Francisco v. EPA, No. 23-753: This case concerns the interpretation of the federal Clean Water Act (“CWA”) and its National...more
In his final days in office, President Joe Biden has exercised his executive authority to withdraw more than 625 million acres of federal waters from future oil and gas leasing – the largest withdrawal of its kind in U.S....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
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACE) on March 22, 2024, announced its plans for enhancing the protection of the country's wetlands following the U.S. Supreme Court's Sackett v. EPA decision. In Sackett, the Supreme Court...more
EPA picked another Clean Water Act fight with the United States Supreme Court last week and I don't understand why EPA thinks it is a fight it can win. As many of you know, the jurisdictional reach of the Clean Water Act is...more
Last month, the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) extended the comment period for amendments it proposed in December 2023 to the Massachusetts Waterways Regulation, 310 CMR 9.00. Peter Vetere...more
Law 360 is reporting on yesterday's hearing in the United States' litigation against the State of Texas to cause the removal of an unpermitted “marine barrier” placed by the State of Texas in the Rio Grande River. Putting...more