BP Unable To Block Oil Spill Claim Payments

April 26, 2013 by

On March 15, 2013, BP asked United States District Court Judge Carl Barbier, Jr. to block the Deepwater Horizon claims administrator from awarding “business economic losses” that BP contends are “fictitious” claims for damages.  BP maintains that the claims administrator, Louisiana lawyer Patrick Juneau, was misinterpreting the wording of the settlement agreement regarding larger claimants [...]

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Filed Under: Environmental Law Cases, Waste Disposal Tagged With: , ,

Growing Controversy Over EPA Proposal Relying On E15 Ethanol/Gasoline Blend

April 19, 2013 by

On June 15, 2012, EPA approved the first applications for the use of E15 Ethanol/Gasoline blend.  Since that time, a dispute has emerged regarding the potential benefits and problems associated with a transition from the current standard E10 blend to E15. The situation became more focused following EPA’s issuance on March 29, of proposed rules [...]

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Filed Under: Emissions and Fuel Standards, Environmental Protection Agency Tagged With: , , , ,

EPA’s Most Recent Rivers and Streams Assessment Concludes only 21% of the Nation’s Rivers and Streams Are In “Good” Biological Condition

April 12, 2013 by

 The U.S. EPA has issued for public comment a draft of its most recent National Rivers and Streams Assessment (NRSA).  The Assessment involved sampling over 1,900 points along wadeable waterways in the contiguous 48 States during 2008 and 2009, and updates a similar study done in 2004.  The draft document is on EPA’s website here [...]

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Filed Under: Environmental Protection Agency, Water Regulations Tagged With: ,

No Permit Required For Timber Harvesting

April 5, 2013 by

The U. S. Supreme Court’s March 20, 2013, decision in Decker v. Northwest Environmental Defense Center is good news for the logging industry.  The Clean Water Act (Act) and EPA’s Silvicultural Rule (Regulation) do not require National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits for discharges of chan­neled stormwater runoff from logging roads.  Permits will be [...]

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Filed Under: Environmental Protection Agency, Water Regulations Tagged With: , , ,

EPA Permitting Regulations Vacated—Project Delays Expected

March 29, 2013 by

The recent decision in Sierra Club v. EPA, 705 F.3d 458 (D.C. Cir. 2013) vacated all of EPA’s rules on Significant Monitoring Concentrations (“SMCs”), as well as some (the Prevention of Significant Deterioration (“PSD”) portion) of the Significant Impact Levels (“SILs”) for Particulate Matter in air emissions measuring 2.5 micrometers in diameter or smaller (“PM2.5”).  [...]

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Filed Under: Air Pollution, Environmental Protection Agency Tagged With: , , ,

Air Pollution Control Costs Have Economic Benefits

March 22, 2013 by

The costs of reducing air emissions, at least particulates, appears to be justified according to research cited during a recent lecture by environmental economist C. Arden Pope, III, a professor at Brigham Young University.  An article from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reports Dr. Pope recounted epidemiological and scientific studies demonstrating the health and economic benefits of air pollution [...]

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Filed Under: Air Pollution

President Nominates Gina McCarthy To Run EPA

March 15, 2013 by

UPDATE to previous article: EPA Confirms Uncertainty Over Timing Of Final Coal Ash Rule As anticipated in a previous posting, President Obama has formally nominated Gina McCarthy to be the next Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. McCarthy brings to the position notable experience at both the state and federal levels.  She joined EPA in 2009, [...]

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Filed Under: Environmental Protection Agency Tagged With: , ,

EPA Confirms Uncertainty Over Timing Of Final Coal Ash Rule

March 8, 2013 by

Previously, we referenced an article in Bloomberg BNA reporting on an interview with an EPA representative who indicated that the Agency could not provide a definitive timeline for promulgating final regulations on the management of coal ash generated by power plants. EPA has now more formally confirmed this uncertainty.  Recently, in announcing projected publication dates [...]

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Filed Under: Air Pollution, Environmental Law Cases Tagged With: , , ,

EPA Agrees to Remove Controversial Turbidity Limit from Construction Stormwater Rule

March 1, 2013 by

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently announced that it has reached an agreement with the Wisconsin Builders Association, the National Association of Home Builders and others to settle litigation challenging revised standards regulating construction stormwater discharges, including a regulation establishing numerical turbidity limits.  The standards were initially adopted in 2009 and then included in the [...]

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Filed Under: Environmental Protection Agency Tagged With: , , ,

EPA’s Air Chief Seen as Favorite to Become the Next Administrator

February 22, 2013 by

A recent article carried by Reuters News Service reports that President Obama favors Gina McCarthy to replace Lisa Jackson as Administrator of the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency.  In December, Jackson indicated a desire to step down from the position. McCarthy currently heads EPA’s Office of Air and Radiation.  Prior to going to EPA, she [...]

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Filed Under: Environmental Protection Agency, Public Figures Tagged With: , ,
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