LATEST INSIGHTS

Industrial Factory Emitting Smoke During Golden Sunset
Emissions / EPA
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EPA Proposes to End Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program for Industrial Facilities

The Environmental Protection Agency announced Sept. 12 a proposed rule to end the Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) for most industrial facilities.

Under the GHGRP, over 8,000 energy facilities and suppliers are required to calculate and submit their greenhouse gas emissions annually without risk of penalty. If finalized, the proposal would remove reporting obligations for most large energy facilities, including refineries, power plants, oil wells, landfills, and CO2 injection sites.

Congress authorized funding for the creation of the GHGRP in 2008. The EPA, under the …

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smog-in-small-town
Emissions
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District Court Lacks Jurisdiction to Hear Claims of Revoked EPA Climate Grants

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of the Columbia Circuit, in a 2-1 vote on Sept. 2, ruled a lower court lacked jurisdiction to hear a case brought by non-profit groups awarded $20 billion in grants under the prior administration’s Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund Program (GGRFP).

The GGRFP was established as part of the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It The was geared specifically toward low-income communities to fund projects that would lower energy costs and pollution for those …

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EPA Offices, Washington DC
Clean Air Act / EPA
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New EPA Permitting Requirements Expected to Accelerate Power Generation and Reshore Manufacturing Projects

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency this week announced new guidance on New Source Review (NSR) preconstruction permitting requirements “to provide much needed clarity for the buildout of essential power generation and reshoring of manufacturing.”

The action, according to the agency, “provides flexibility to begin certain building activities that are not related to air emissions, such as installing cement pads, before obtaining a Clean Air Act (CAA) construction permit.”

The CAA’s NSR program is a preconstruction permitting program that requires certain stationary sources of air pollution …

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Sea and Sky
Regulations
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Jurisdiction at Depth: Updating U.S. Deep-Sea Mining Policy Under Executive Order 14285

With the rapid and exponential advancement of modern technology, there is a corresponding increase in demand for the foundational raw materials that enable such progress. Contemporary innovations, including electric vehicles, smartphones and other high-performance electronics are critically dependent on specific mineral resources such as cobalt, nickel, lithium and copper. These materials serve as indispensable components in batteries, circuitry and other essential systems, underscoring their strategic importance in sustaining technological development. Consequently, securing reliable access to these resources has become a pressing global concern.

Historically, these …

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Model House and Blueprint
California / Legislation
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Could Rollback of Environmental Impact Law Help California Fight Its Housing Crisis?

Earlier this summer, as part of the state’s annual budget deal, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation that alters how the existing California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) would apply to certain housing development projects in the Golden State.

A landmark law signed in 1970 by then-governor Ronald Reagan, the CEQA was intended to reduce environmental harms by requiring public agencies to identify and mitigate potential environmental impacts of the implementation of building activities and governmental policies. Throughout the decades since the CEQA was enacted, a …

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American Flag and Florida Flag between Palm Trees
Florida / NEPA
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U.S. District Court Orders Immediate Closure of ‘Alligator Alcatraz’

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida on Aug. 21 ordered the federal government to refrain from sending additional detainees to the detention center known as “Alligator Alcatraz” and to begin transferring detainees to other facilities within 60 days.  

The court further ordered that once all detainees are transferred, the facility must be dismantled, including the removal of all fencing, lighting, and generators. The court sided with tribal and environmental groups, finding that federal officials violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), requiring the government to issue an Environmental Impact Statement (EIA) or to conduct an Environmental Assessment (EA).

The government argued in opposition that a review under …

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Chemical Factory Producing Ethylene Oxide
Emissions
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Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals Revives Ethylene Oxide Medical Monitoring Suit

On August 18, 2025, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit issued its long-awaited decision in Sommerville v. Union Carbide Corp., reversing the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of West Virginia’s summary judgment ruling in favor of the plant owner defendants. In the case, the lead plaintiff, on her own behalf, and others similarly situated, alleged exposure to ethylene oxide (“EtO”). It is claimed that EtO is a cancer-causing gas. The lawsuit involves manufacturing operations in South Charleston, …

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power station
Emissions / New York
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New York Moves Forward with Ban on Fossil Fuels in New Constructions

On July 25, the District Court for the Northern District of New York in Mulhern Gas Co. v. Mosely ruled that New York has the power to enact the All-Electric Building Act (AEBA). The decision clears the way for the AEBA to take effect in 2026, making New York the first state to require (most) new buildings to be all electric.

The AEBA was passed by the New York Legislature and signed into law by Governor Hochul back in 2023. Under the AEBA, new single-family …

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American Flag and Florida Flag between Palm Trees
NEPA
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Environmental Groups Halt Construction of ‘Alligator Alcatraz’

U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams on Aug. 7 issued a temporary restraining order to pause construction on the controversial detention center known as “Alligator Alcatraz” for two weeks pending argument on the underlying preliminary injunction action.

Plaintiffs – which include the environmental non-profit groups, Friends of the Everglades, Inc. and the Center for Biological Diversity – filed suit on June 27 in the Southern District of Florida against various officials with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and Miami-Dade Florida …

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Mountain range in the morning
NEPA
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Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals Reinstates Biden-Era NEPA Regulations

While shifting political winds don’t literally blow through the trees, their force and impact can cause environmental policy to lurch back and forth.

For instance, in 2020, during the final quarter of the first Trump administration, the White House Counsel on Environmental Quality (CEQ) took steps to change the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by limiting federal oversight on newly begun projects, shortening the permissible length and depth of applications, and reducing the obligation to study the long-term impact of projects on the environment.  …

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