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A federal grand jury has indicted Houston-based Phillips 66 on several charges related to alleged Clean Water Act (CWA) violations. Phillips is charged with two counts of negligently violating the CWA and four counts of knowingly violating the CWA in incidents that allegedly discharged thousands of gallons of industrial wastewater from the Phillips Carson oil […]
Arguments in City and County of San Francisco v. EPA were heard before the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) in October. The question before SCOTUS is whether the Clean Water Act (CWA) allows the EPA (or an authorized state) “to impose generic prohibitions in National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits that subject […]
The EPA has put the state of Vermont on notice that it must make corrections to its administration of the federal National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) program or lose the authority altogether. In a letter dated September 6, 2024, the EPA Region 1 administrator informed Vermont authorities it had received a joint petition from […]
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in September ruled against the EPA in United States Sugar Corp. v. EPA, unanimously deciding that the EPA erred in retroactively classifying industrial boilers built before 2020 as new sources of emissions. These boilers are used to create heat, electricity, and other forms of energy by burning materials like […]
After calling for more accessible public emissions records from Colorado, the EPA abruptly changed course and “proposed to rescind its previous directive that required the State of Colorado to collect and maintain critical air pollution data from the oil and gas industry,” states a Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) press release. “A coalition of […]
A coalition of environmental groups filed suit against the EPA on September 3, 2024, challenging the Agency’s final emissions rule for coke ovens and coke oven batteries. The coalition includes the Greater-Birmingham Alliance to Stop Pollution (GASP), the Clean Air Council, the Hoosier Environmental Council, Just Transition Northwest Indiana, PANIC, PennFuture, and the Sierra Club […]
The Biden-Harris administration recently announced a new strategy to tackle plastic pollution called ”Mobilizing Federal Action on Plastic Pollution: Progress, Principles, and Priorities.” According to the White House Fact Sheet about the strategy, this action marks the first time the federal government has formally acknowledged the severity of U.S. plastic pollution and the scale of […]
The EPA is reviewing comments on proposed revisions to the preconstruction permitting regulations that apply to modifications at existing major stationary sources in the New Source Review (NSR) program under the Clean Air Act (CAA). The proposed revisions include: The NSR program requires certain stationary sources of air pollution to obtain permits before construction. The […]
On July 8, 2024, the EPA announced it issued a Notice of Violation (NOV) to Suncor Energy (U.S.A.) Inc., alleging the Commerce City refinery failed to comply with air emissions laws. The NOV was issued in partnership with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE). The agencies allege Suncor violated or is violating […]
EPA Clean Water Act (CWA) wastewater regulations are set to face U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) scrutiny. In the case City and County of San Francisco v. EPA, San Francisco is suing the EPA over generic water quality prohibitions in permitting decisions. “The EPA had urged the Supreme Court to decline the petition, insisting narrative limitations […]