Key Takeaways -
What Happened? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed the 2026 version of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) MSGP for stormwater discharges associated with...more
On March 4, the City and County of San Francisco and a Beveridge & Diamond (B&D) team led by Principal Drew Silton (Washington, DC), secured a significant victory in the U.S. Supreme Court in City and County of San Francisco...more
On March 24, 2025, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (together, the Agencies) announced plans to engage stakeholders in the Trump administration’s latest effort to pare back...more
Update: On February 3, 2025, EPA extended the comment period on the 2026 Multi-Sector General Permit (MSGP) to April 4, 2025....more
Update: On January 31, under the new Trump administration, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) reopened the comment period for the 2024 Preliminary Designation and draft General Permit for CII properties. Written...more
2026 MSGP -
EPA released its proposed 2026 MSGP, which authorizes stormwater discharges associated with industrial activities in jurisdictions where EPA is the NPDES permitting authority, including Massachusetts, New...more
On November 20, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 9 published in the Federal Register its Final Designation of stormwater discharges from commercial, industrial, and institutional (CII) properties...more
Key Takeaways -
What Is Happening? On October 31, 2024, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Region 1 provided notice of two proposed actions pursuant to its “residual designation authority” (RDA) under the Clean...more
Key Takeaways -
What Happened? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published its final recommended aquatic life water quality criteria and benchmarks for two per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is soliciting comments on a draft guidance document on approaches to issuing National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits for communities that have completed...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA or Agency), on November 27, 2023, released its draft guidance addressing its proposed interpretation to apply the Supreme Court decision in County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund,...more
Facilities operating across the country need to be prepared for increased climate-driven enforcement at all levels of federal government—especially at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). With EPA’s Climate...more
As September ended, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s Region 1 office took a series of actions signaling the agency’s intention to impose climate change adaptation requirements in National Pollutant Discharge...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (together, the Agencies) issued a straight-to-final-rule revised definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) on August 29, 2023. This...more
On May 25, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited decision in Sackett v. EPA, No. 21-454, holding that Clean Water Act (CWA) jurisdiction extends to wetlands only if they have a continuous surface connection to...more
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) continues to expand its toolbox for addressing PFAS constituents — this time, by branching out into Clean Water Act (CWA) enforcement of industrial permit effluent limitations....more
On December 30, 2022, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) announced a final rule once again updating the definition of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS) and,...more
On January 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) granted review of Sackett v. EPA, apparently with the sole purpose of deciding once and for all “the proper test for determining whether wetlands are ‘waters of the United...more
In a recent decision, a federal judge in Arizona vacated the Trump Administration’s Navigable Waters Protection Rule (NWPR) and remanded the rulemaking back to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of...more
Over the past week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced plans to undo the Trump administration’s Navigable Waters Protection Rule, and take the Biden administration’s next...more
Key Takeaways What Is Happening? The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published for public comment its proposed 2022 National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Construction General Permit (CGP), which...more
EPA’s recent draft guidance memorandum on applying the Supreme Court’s decision in County of Maui v. Hawai’i Wildlife Fund, 140 S. Ct. 1462 (2020), provides little clarity for determining when a release to groundwater is the...more
Public water, wastewater, and stormwater utilities face an array of compliance obligations under the federal Clean Water Act (CWA) that require investment in upgrades and maintenance of critical wastewater infrastructure....more
On July 27, 2020, U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) Assistant Attorney General (AAG) Jeffrey Bossert Clark issued a memorandum setting forth limitations to federal civil enforcement discretion concerning certain Clean Water...more
If three states have their way, EPA’s general permit for industrial stormwater discharges will impose obligations relating to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Colorado, Massachusetts, and New Mexico submitted...more