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In one of its major end-of-year actions, the EPA on Wednesday, released its final renewal fuel standards (RFS) for 2017 and, for biomass-based diesel, for 2018. The Agency increased the RFS percentages across all categories of biofuels, an action that was welcomed by RFS advocates and criticized by the petroleum industry as burdening consumers with […]
Two environmental groups have filed a suit in a U.S. District Court against the Department of the Interior (DOI) for allegedly failing to comply with federal law regarding the impact of hydraulic fracturing and acidizing being conducted at oil production platforms in California’s Santa Barbara Channel.
With the double goal of promoting responsible development of solar and wind energy on public lands and ensuring that U.S. taxpayers receive fair market value for such development, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has amended its regulations governing leases of rights-of-way issued under the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) and the Mineral […]
In a September 15, 2016, hearing of the House Environment Subcommittee, Jim Bridenstine (R-OK), the subcommittee chair, modified for a new purpose the “war on coal” tagline supporters of the mining and energy industries have used to characterize the Obama administration’s coal-related environmental regulations. According to Bridenstine, the administration is now also engaging in a […]
The attorneys general (AGs) of states that successfully petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to stay EPA’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) while litigation on the CPP proceeds in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit are now asking the Agency to extend by at least 60 days the current August 29, 2016, deadline for […]
In today’s world, underground storage tanks (USTs) contain an assortment of products ranging from gasoline to diesel to biofuels to hazardous chemical substances. Because of the wide swath of fuels and chemical substances available, it is imperative for tank owners to ensure that the tank itself is compatible with the substance stored. Storing certain fuels […]
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) has been closely monitoring and reporting on how EPA’s Mercury and Air Toxic Standards (MATS) are impacting electricity generation in the United States. As the latest EIA preliminary data show, the scrutiny is well deserved. Based on information received from operators, between January 2015 and April 2016, about 87 […]
The Cape Wind Project (Project), now midway through its second decade of planning without a single turbine standing, encountered another hurdle when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit issued a multipart decision that agreed with two out of three claims environmental groups have made against the Project. Importantly, the court said the […]
On June 22, 2016, President Obama signed the Protecting Our Infrastructure of Pipelines and Enhancing Safety Act (PIPES Act). The law, which received strong bipartisan support, extends and funds through 2019 the gas and hazardous liquid pipeline safety program implemented by the Department of Transportation’s Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA).
A Minnesota law that prohibits utilities from meeting state electricity demand with power from new plants that contribute to statewide carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions was found in violation of the Constitution’s dormant Commerce Clause because the law places an undue burden on interstate commerce.