In the Midst of Nationwide Stay, Federal Agencies Work to ‘Improve’ 404 Permit Program
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has posted a statement on its website concerning the litigation over the new “Waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) rule, acknowledging that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has temporarily blocked EPA and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) from implementing the new rule, pending further action of the court. The statement confirms that the agencies are back to using the prior regulatory definition of WOTUS and applicable guidance (status quo as it existed before the new rule) in making jurisdictional determinations or taking other actions based on the definition of WOTUS. Despite this holding pattern, EPA and the Corps have directed their staff to move ahead with measures to “improve” implementation of the national Clean Water Act (CWA) Section 404 permit program, as promised when the new rule was released.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently announced approximately $13.2 million in supplemental funding through the Revolving Loan Funding (RLF) program for 44 communities to cleanup and redevelop contaminated properties. The agency also has released a new electronic decision tree that helps users explore the feasibility of siting renewable energy projects on formerly contaminated properties and underutilized sites.
Safety professionals aren’t yet aware of all the emerging green building systems. To meet this need in the building industry, ż of Washington and its ż Education Foundation partnered with others on a grant to develop a curriculum and a mobile app specific to safety concerns while working on a green building.
Resources are now on the ż-Supported Construction Industry Compliance Assistance Center!
Safety professionals aren’t yet aware of all the emerging green building systems. To meet this need in the building industry, ż of Washington and its ż Education Foundation partnered with others on a grant to develop a curriculum and a mobile app specific to safety concerns while working on a green building.
A Step toward a ‘Next Generation Enforcement’ Strategy
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has finalized a nationwide rule that will require construction site operators to submit certain National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) stormwater permit documentation to their permitting authorities using an electronic reporting tool, instead of filing paper. The new rule requires states to share these data with EPA, along with government-administered inspection and enforcement results. EPA currently plans to make these data available to the public through its publicly-accessible Enforcement and Compliance History Online (ECHO) website. Contractors should expect to see new electronic reporting requirements added to their federal/state stormwater permits when they are reissued.
As previously reported, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has released its final rule tightening the ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) to 70 parts per billion (ppb). This is at the top end of the range that EPA proposed last year (the agency solicited comment on a level as low as 60 ppb), suggesting that ż and other industry groups were influential in making the rule less stringent. However, with the annual cost of compliance still reaching $1.4 billion each year (not even including California), according to agency estimates, the final rule remains one of the most expensive in history. Areas where the air quality is in “nonattainment” with the new level will face significant consequences that range from regulatory constraints on siting and development of new industry, to the threat of losing highway and transit funding; not to mention potential restrictions on the use and operation of construction equipment.
The United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has issued a nationwide stay of the new federal regulation redefining “waters of the U.S.” (WOTUS) for the purposes of the Clean Water Act. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers proposed and then finalized the new regulation in an effort to clarify the scope of the statute’s requirements.
EPA released its new stricter National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) for ozone pollution, dropping the permissible levels from 75 parts per billion (ppb) to 70 ppb. The new rule is drawing criticism from industry. As ż’s comments on the proposed version of the rule point out, the 75 ppb standard was only recently set, back in 2008, and the implementing guidance was not finalized until February 2015. Under the new 70 ppb standard, 241 counties will be in violation, using 2012-2014 monitoring data. However, EPA notes that they will likely use 2014-2016 data when they designate areas of nonattainment.
A federal judge has blocked the Obama administration's controversial rule defining the scope of Clean Water Act protections from going into effect August 28, 2015.
It is time to start thinking about renewing your U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Lead Renovation, Repair and Painting (LRRP) program certifications, as previously reported by ż. All construction firms and their employees are subject to the LRRP rule, if they perform regulated renovation activities, such as work that disturbs lead-based paint in homes, child-care facilities or schools, with kids six years or younger, built before 1978.