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EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler’s remarks at the September 12, 2020, G20 Agriculture and Water Ministers Meeting stressed that water issues are the biggest environmental challenges facing the world now. He emphasized the lack of access to safe drinking water by approximately 2 billion people globally.
In response to complaints by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) and Senator Kamala D. Harris (D-Calif.), on August 25, 2020, the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) announced it would open a review of the penalties the EPA has assessed against San Francisco due to sewer overflows.
California Assembly Bill 2954 (AB 2954) proposes unique legislation to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from “working lands” (including agricultural, grazing, and forest) and “natural lands.” Additionally, the bill seeks to implement carbon sequestration programs on the lands that would be regulated by the bill.
On August 26, 2020, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced amendments to “modernize disclosures of business, legal proceedings and risk factors under Regulation S-K” for publicly traded companies. These are the first significant amendments to these disclosure requirements in more than 30 years.
Several stationary air emissions monitors in areas impacted by Hurricane Laura are offline, leaving many concerned about current air pollution levels along the Louisiana and Texas Gulf Coast.
New York State Supreme Court Justice Gerald W. Connolly released his decision on August 20, 2020, upholding New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation’s (DEC) right to enforce the state’s ban on single-use plastic shopping bags.
On August 24, 2020, the EPA published proposed rules that, if enacted, will amend the National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) for the control of hazardous air pollutants (HAPs) at major sources from new and existing industrial, commercial, and institutional (ICI) boilers and process heaters.
The EPA released a final memorandum on “Guidance on Plantwide Applicability Limitation (PAL) Provisions Under the New Source Review (NSR) Regulations” on August 5, 2020.
On August 13, 2020, EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler announced two final rules related to the New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) for the oil and natural gas industry.
The EPA must improve oversight of how states implement air emissions regulations for municipal solid waste (MSW) landfills, according to a report published by the Office of Inspector General (OIG) on July 30, 2020. The OIG serves as the EPA’s watchdog.