LDEQ issued regulations implementing Louisiana’s first-ever voluntary environmental self-audit program. The regulations provide for the reduction or elimination of civil penalties for certain violations disclosed to LDEQ as the result of a voluntary environmental self-audit. Read more about the regulations here.
Continue Reading LDEQ Releases Louisiana’s First-Ever Voluntary Environmental Self-Audit Program

A Louisiana federal court recently blocked EPA and DOJ from enforcing Title VI against the State of Louisiana to require disparate and cumulative impact analyses under federal environmental justice (EJ) policies for its state permitting. Read more about this decision and its ramifications here.
Continue Reading EJ Evolution: Court Enjoins EPA from Imposing Disparate Impact Requirements via Title VI in Louisiana Permitting

In the recent First Circuit Court of Appeal decision reinstating the Formosa facility permits, the court clarified that consideration of environmental justice is included in the Louisiana Public Trust Doctrine. To learn more about how this opinion may affect permit challenges and permit requirements, read more here.
Continue Reading Louisiana Appeals Court Finds Environmental Justice Is Part of the Louisiana Public Trust Duty

In the Fifth Circuit’s first application of Sackett v. EPA, the court ends a ten-year conflict regarding federal Clean Water Act jurisdiction over a Louisiana property, holding that under the new Supreme Court standard no WOTUS exist on the property.
Continue Reading Fifth Circuit Applies U.S. Supreme Court’s Sackett Decision to End Long-Standing WOTUS Dispute

On December 7, 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) disapproved the state implementation plan (SIP) revisions for the Baton Rouge ozone nonattainment area that Louisiana set forth in response to EPA’s 2015 SIP Call rule. This 2015 SIP Call rule focused on the treatment of excess emissions during periods of startup, shutdown, or malfunction (SSM).

EPA issued draft guidance revising its Technical Guidance for Assessing Environmental Justice in Regulatory Analysis. The proposed revisions incorporate portions of Executive Order 14096, and they align with the federal government’s push to enhance community involvement, to assess cumulative impacts, and put EJ issues front and center in agency decision-making. Read more about the proposed changes here. #environmentaljustice
Continue Reading EJ Evolution: EPA Issues Draft Revision of Technical Guidance for Assessing Environmental Justice in Regulatory Analysis

The EPA is seeking comments on its recently-published Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, which proposes national performance standards under the Vessel Incidental Discharge Act. The EPA presents new data on ballast water management systems and solicits public comments on the standards and definitions applicable to ballast tanks, hulls and associated niche areas, and graywater systems. The Supplemental Notice of Proposed Rulemaking brings VIDA one step closer to full implementation.
Continue Reading EPA’s Proposed Rule on Vessel Incidental Discharges Brings VIDA One Step Closer to Full Implementation

Most American maritime and environmental attorneys and vessel owners are familiar with OPA 90 and oil spill liability in the United States. But what happens when a vessel spills oil in the territorial waters of another country?
Continue Reading Oil Spill Liability: OPA 90 v. the IMO’S CLC

EPA and the Army Corps published their new regulatory definition of “Waters of the United States” (WOTUS) today in response to the Supreme Court’s landmark Sackett decision from earlier this year. While the rule clearly narrows the scope of federally regulated wetlands, ambiguity remains as to certain types of wetlands.
Continue Reading EPA and Army Corps Release New WOTUS Rule

The Council on Environmental Quality’s recent proposed revisions to NEPA regulations would explicitly include environmental justice in the NEPA process and codify a definition for the term. This proposal signals an upcoming first, a fixed place for EJ in federal law.
Continue Reading EJ Evolution: Proposed NEPA Regulations Spotlight Environmental Justice