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
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
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
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
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 24, 2025, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published plans to seek stakeholder input on implementing a new definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) under the Clean Water Act (CWA). The EPA’s goal...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
The US Supreme Court issued an order on April 6 staying the district court vacatur of the US Environmental Protection Agency’s 2020 Clean Water Act Section 401 Certification Rule, which imposed restrictions on state and...more
In 2022, the on-going debate will continue over the hotly contested definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS), a phrase that determines the scope of federal jurisdiction over streams, wetlands and other waterbodies...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
Since 2015, jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act (CWA or the Act) has been in a near constant state of flux, creating a challenging regulatory landscape for project developers and the regulatory community. The last few...more
On December 7, 2021, the most recent proposed revision to the Clean Water Act’s term, “Waters of the United States” was published in the Federal Register. (See 86 FR 69372.) Comments on this proposal must be submitted by...more
On December 7, 2021, EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers jointly issued a formal Proposed Rule to define “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) regulated under the Clean Water Act (CWA). Comments on the proposal are due by...more
The proposed definition would significantly extend the regulatory scope of the Clean Water Act. On December 7, 2021, the US Environmental Protection Agency and the US Army Corps of Engineers (collectively, the Agencies)...more
On December 7, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the Corps) took their latest stab at clarifying the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act (CWA), proposing (another) new definition of...more
On November 18, 2021, The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) announced the availability of a pre-publication version of a proposed rule (Proposed Rule) to amend the definition of Waters...more
On November 18, 2021, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of the Army announced a proposed rule to revise the definition of Waters of the United States (WOTUS). According to the agencies, the...more
On November 18, 2021, EPA and the Department of the Army released their anticipated proposed revision to the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) – which phrase governs the geographic reach of the Clean Water...more
The United States Environmental Protection Agency and the United States Corps of Engineers (collectively “EPA”) announced on November 19th a revised definition of waters of the United States (“WOTUS”). The agencies are...more
An Arizona District Court's recent ruling has effectively eliminated the Trump-era Navigable Waters Protection Rule (NWPR) on a nationwide scale and could dramatically alter the Federal 404 wetland dredge-and-fill permit...more
The United States Environmental Protection Agency and United States Corps of Engineers (collectively “EPA”) announced on September 3rd that they have halted implementation of the Navigable Waters Protection Rule (“NWPR”) and...more
The Navigable Waters Protection Rule was recently vacated by the Federal District Court of Arizona, and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have signaled their intent to treat the...more
Friday EPA and the Army Corps of Engineers announced that between now and Labor Day they will be listening to stakeholders as they kick off what will be the eighth attempt to resolve by regulation the reach of the Federal...more
At the end of the December, the EPA Science Advisory Board posted the text of a letter that the SAB intends to send to Administrator Wheeler concerning the administration’s proposed revision to the WOTUS rule. The SAB’s...more
A decision by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Georgia issued on August 21, 2019, highlights the continuing confusion over the definition of “waters of the United States” under the Clean Water Act. The...more