One of the Bay Area’s largest reservoirs is about to get bigger thanks to a partnership between local water agencies and the federal government. The San Luis Reservoir Dam, between Los Banos and Gilroy, will be raised 10 feet...more
11/18/2024
/ California ,
CARB ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Landfills ,
Low Carbon Fuel Standard ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oil Spills ,
State and Local Government ,
Wastewater ,
Water Supplies
In the last four years, California has adopted some of the nation’s most innovative air regulations, including a ban on new gasoline-powered car sales by 2035 and a prohibition against diesel-fueled trucks visiting state...more
11/8/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Air Quality Standards ,
Ballot Measures ,
California ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Environmental Policies ,
Incidental Take Permits ,
Infrastructure ,
Public Health ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Trump Administration ,
Waste Disposal ,
Water ,
Wildfires
Two weeks after setting a nationwide deadline for removal of lead pipes, the Biden administration is imposing strict new limits on dust from lead-based paint in older homes and child-care facilities....more
11/4/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Waste ,
Lead Paint ,
Net Zero ,
Plastics ,
Popular ,
Recycling ,
Refineries ,
State and Local Government ,
Wal-Mart
California officials have been working on a plan to preserve the state’s leading edge environmental and climate policies, in the event that former President Donald J. Trump returns to the White House and follows through on...more
10/18/2024
/ California ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Policy ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Violations ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Infrastructure ,
Marine Life Protections ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pollution Control ,
SCOTUS ,
Settlement
At its October 10 meeting, the California Fish and Game Commission (the Commission) unanimously found that a petition to list the western burrowing owl as an endangered or threatened species in California provides sufficient...more
10/14/2024
/ California ,
California Endangered Species Act ,
California Fish and Game Commission ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Joe Biden ,
Lead Poisoning ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
State and Local Government ,
Superfund ,
Tribal Governments ,
Tribal Lands ,
Urban Planning & Development ,
Wastewater ,
Water Pollution ,
Water Quality
Governor Gavin Newsom on September 29 signed Assembly Bill (AB) 98 into law. The bill, which faced opposition from business groups, local governments, and environmental justice advocates, forbids cities and counties from...more
ExxonMobil sued by California AG and environmental nonprofits over plastic waste -
California Attorney General Rob Bonta and a coalition of environmental nonprofit entities sued ExxonMobil on Monday, accusing the company...more
9/27/2024
/ California ,
Contamination ,
Department of Water Resources ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Violations ,
Exxon Mobil ,
Inland Waterways ,
New Legislation ,
Oil & Gas ,
Plastic Bag Bans ,
Pollution Control ,
Settlement ,
Water
Farmers in southern Tulare County will face greater scrutiny for groundwater pumping after the state placed the region on probation following a lengthy hearing in Sacramento on Tuesday....more
9/20/2024
/ California ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Farms ,
Groundwater ,
Infrastructure ,
Natural Resources ,
PFAS ,
State and Local Government ,
Water ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Water Rights ,
Water Supplies
Federal officials announced on Wednesday that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved a three-year-old rule — known as the Warehouse Indirect Source Rule (Rule) — targeting air pollution linked to Southern...more
9/13/2024
/ California ,
Class Action ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Energy Policy ,
Environmental Policies ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
Infrastructure ,
Offshore Drilling ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pollution Control ,
Wastewater
Regional Boards’ enforcement of the Construction General Permit (CGP) and Industrial General Permit (IGP) continues to yield high penalty figures; transition to 2022 CGP brings new requirements; and the forthcoming...more
9/12/2024
/ Best Management Practices ,
California ,
Clean Water Act ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Industry ,
Construction Project ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
General Permit ,
Land Owners ,
Real Estate Development ,
Water Control Board ,
Water Quality Control Boards
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will lead an investigation into the Tijuana-U.S. cross-border sewage crisis, measuring the potential health impacts on people who live and work near where millions of gallons of...more
9/9/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Biden Administration ,
California ,
Contamination ,
Cross-Border ,
Drought ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Salmon ,
Superfund ,
Water Pollution ,
Water Rights
A California Superior Court judge ruled last week that Sonoma County must do more to ensure responsible groundwater pumping under the state’s Public Trust Doctrine, which holds that rivers, creeks, and other waterways are...more
8/30/2024
/ California ,
Dams ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Groundwater ,
Landfills ,
Lead ,
Methane ,
Oil & Gas ,
Salmon ,
SCAQMD ,
Water Quality Control Boards
Three years after a massive spill at a Los Angeles wastewater facility sent millions of gallons of sewage into Santa Monica Bay, the city has agreed to spend more than $20 million on improvements to remedy the environmental...more
8/26/2024
/ Air Quality Standards ,
CARB ,
Contaminated Properties ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Environmental Violations ,
Fuel Standards ,
Infrastructure ,
Oil & Gas ,
Public Health ,
Reclamation ,
Refineries ,
U.S. Navy
Recent raging winter storms have caved in streets, wrecked piers, collapsed homes and apartment buildings, and submerged property up and down California’s coastline. As sea levels continue to rise from climate change,...more
8/19/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Biden Administration ,
California ,
Chevron ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Coastal Real Estate ,
Diesel Bans ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Infrastructure ,
PFAS ,
Public Health ,
Rising Sea Levels
The city of Fresno announced this week that Shell USA, Dow Chemical, and other oil and chemical companies have agreed to pay the city $230 million to settle the city’s 2007 lawsuit against them for allegedly contaminating...more
8/9/2024
/ Biden Administration ,
Contamination ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Dow Chemical ,
Drinking Water ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Infrastructure ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pesticides ,
PFAS ,
Pipelines ,
Pollution Control ,
Public Health ,
Shell Oil ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Water Conservation
Climate change threatens to dramatically shrink the amount of water California can deliver over the next 20 years and could significantly reduce supplies available from the State Water Project according to new projections...more
8/5/2024
/ Agricultural Land ,
California ,
CARB ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Climate Change ,
Department of Water Resources ,
Endangered Species ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Governor Newsom ,
Groundwater ,
Landfills ,
Reclamation ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
An environmental advocacy organization on July 23 filed a lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles over the Port of L.A.'s stormwater treatment system. At issue is a 53-acre portion of the port on Terminal Island where...more
7/29/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Water Act ,
Desalination ,
Discharge of Pollutants ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Storm Water ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA) ,
Waste Treatment Facilities ,
Water Pollution
A report published last week by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) concluded that the former Exide Technologies battery recycling plant and surrounding properties in southeast Los Angeles County qualify for...more
7/15/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Batteries ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
CERCLA ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Oil Wells ,
Recycling ,
Regulatory Mandates ,
Superfund ,
U.S. Navy ,
Warehouses ,
Water Resources Control Board
On June 28, 2024, the United States Supreme Court upended decades of precedent by overturning the Chevron doctrine in the combined cases of Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and Relentless Inc. v. Department of Commerce...more
7/1/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Chevron Deference ,
Chevron v NRDC ,
Government Agencies ,
Judicial Authority ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
Magnuson-Stevens Act (MSA) ,
National Marine Fisheries Service ,
Popular ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Relentless Inc v US Department of Commerce ,
SCOTUS ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Vessels
The U.S. Supreme Court today upended a 40-year-old decision that made it easier for the federal government to regulate the environment, public health, workplace safety, and consumer protections, delivering a far-reaching and...more
7/1/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
California ,
Chevron Deference ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
PFAS ,
Railways ,
SCOTUS ,
Toxic Exposure ,
Well Drilling
In an order filed Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Terrence Boyle denied a private property owner’s effort to enjoin the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Army Corps of Engineers from enforcing their September 2023...more
6/24/2024
/ California ,
DTSC ,
Endangered Species Act (ESA) ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Fees ,
Groundwater ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Sackett v EPA ,
State and Local Government ,
US Army Corps of Engineers ,
Water Resources Control Board ,
Waters of the United States
Chemical and manufacturing groups sued the federal government on Monday over a landmark drinking water standard that would require cleanup of certain PFAS, so-called forever chemicals, which have been linked to cancer and...more
6/17/2024
/ Agricultural Land ,
Air Quality Standards ,
California ,
California Fish and Game Commission ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Contamination ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Insecticide ,
Landfills ,
PFAS ,
Safe Drinking Water Act
Plans to build the largest new reservoir in California in 50 years have taken a significant step forward following a judge’s decision last Friday to dismiss a lawsuit filed by environmental groups challenging the adequacy of...more
6/10/2024
/ California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
CEQA ,
Department of Toxic Substances Control ,
Energy Projects ,
Environmental Impact Report (EIR) ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Hazardous Substances ,
Industrial Discharges ,
NOAA ,
Toxic Exposure ,
Water Pollution ,
Water Quality
The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to consider whether federal and state agencies must clearly define limits on wastewater pollution when issuing discharge permits. The high court took up the City of San Francisco’s...more
6/3/2024
/ Activist ,
Biden Administration ,
California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Water Act ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Habitat Conservation Plan ,
Oil & Gas ,
Plastics ,
SCOTUS ,
US Fish and Wildlife Service ,
Wastewater
Over the past six months environmental, social, and governance (ESG) policy has shifted into a new era with the promulgation of new Greenhouse Gas (GHG) disclosure requirements at both the federal and state level in...more