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
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 March 12, 2025, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Lee Zeldin announced more than 30 actions to roll back regulations to advance President Trump’s Day One executive orders. These include actions...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
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
When you find yourself digging the same hole and getting nowhere, quit digging. At least, that is what rational logic would dictate. On December 30, 2022, the U.S. EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (collectively,...more
Drew Wrigley Appointed North Dakota Attorney General - North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum appointed Drew Wrigley to be the new Attorney General. Wrigley replaces former Attorney General Wayne Stenehjem who passed away...more
An Arizona district court decision right before Labor Day effectively put the pre-2015 wetlands jurisdiction rule back in effect for most states, eliminating changes made under both the Obama and Trump administrations. (See...more
In What About Bob, a movie worth seeing only if you, like me, think every film including Bill Murray is worth seeing, the fictional guru Dr. Leo Marvin wrote a book called "Baby Steps." The theme of "Baby Steps" is that no...more
Linear infrastructure projects, including oil and gas pipelines, electric transmission lines and transportation, have faced a number of regulatory challenges over the last year. Some of these challenges stem from changes in...more
The swearing-in of Michael Regan as EPA Administrator means that open questions on policy, agenda-setting, and prioritization for the Agency will soon be answered. Issues that have risen to the top of the new EPA...more
Section 402 of the Clean Water Act (CWA) prohibits the discharge of any pollutant from any point source to navigable waters (“Waters of the United States” or “WOTUS”) unless authorized by a permit (Section 402 NPDES Permits)....more
On his first day in office on January 20, 2021, President Biden signed an Executive Order titled, “Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis” (the Order). The Order...more
On his first day in office, President Joe Biden issued an Executive Order titled “Protecting Public Health and the Environment and Restoring Science to Tackle the Climate Crisis.” The Executive Order directs the Environment...more
Joseph R. Biden Jr.’s inauguration on January 20, 2021 as the forty-sixth President of the United States could usher in a sweeping period of environmental regulatory changes vastly eclipsing those of his immediate predecessor...more
This is Part 3 in a five-part series addressing the recent changes in legal standards regulating water resources in the United States. Part 3 examines the requirements and limitations on water quality certifications to be...more
Linear infrastructure projects, including oil and gas pipelines, electric transmission lines and transportation, have faced a number of regulatory challenges in recent months. Some of these challenges stem from changes in...more
On January 23, 2020, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) finalized the Navigable Waters Protection Rule (Rule) to define “waters of the United States” (WOTUS). ...more
It’s well-known that the Trump administration has sought policies of deregulation over the past several years. The administration places emphasis on proper enforcement of existing rules and regulations as a means of achieving...more
On February 6, 2018, the EPA formally suspended the Obama-era “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) rule until 2020. This delayed implementation will provide the Trump administration with additional time to issue a clearer, and...more
The Environmental Protection Agency issued a 163-page proposed rule on August 9, 2019, to clarify the substantive and procedural requirements for water quality certifications under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act....more
Judge Delivers Major Setback to Trump Policy to Increase Coal Mining on Federal Land - "But the court ruling does say that the 2017 Trump administration policy, enacted by former Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, to overturn...more
On April 10, 2019, President Trump issued a pair of Executive Orders aimed at streamlining Clean Water Act permitting of the nation’s energy infrastructure. The Executive Order on Promoting Energy Infrastructure and Economic...more
The US Environmental Protection Agency and the Army Corps of Engineers’ joint proposed definition of “waters of the United States” would eliminate the regulation of waters with a “significant nexus” to certain other covered...more
Revised Definition of "Waters of the United States" - Proposed Rule - "The agencies' proposal is the second step in a two-step process to review and revise the definition of 'waters of the United States' consistent with...more