Wetlands

NYSDEC Seeks Input on Regulations Implementing Major Expansion of State’s Freshwater Wetlands Jurisdiction

On January 3, 2024, NYSDEC announced an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rule Making  for potential revisions to its freshwater wetlands regulations, accompanied by a complete pre-proposal draft of revised 6 NYCRR Part 664 regulations. NYSDEC is accepting public comments on its draft regulations through February 20, 2024. Background: 2022 Statutory Changes to the Freshwater Wetlands…

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Supreme Court Significantly Curtails Federal Jurisdiction over Wetlands in Sackett v. EPA

On May 25, 2023, the Supreme Court issued its decision in Sackett v. EPA, ruling that federal jurisdiction over wetlands under the Clean Water Act (CWA or the Act), which prohibits discharging pollutants into “the waters of the United States” (WOTUS), extends to only those wetlands with a continuous surface connection to WOTUS. The Sackett…

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Waters in Flux: EPA and Army Corps Revise the Definition of “Waters of the United States”

On January 18, 2023, the EPA and Army Corps of Engineers (Army Corps) published a new final rule revising the definition of “waters of the United States” (the Rule) found in regulations implementing the Clean Water Act (CWA or the Act). The new Rule will become effective on March 20, 2023 (pending the outcomes of…

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Clean Water Act Update: EPA Repeals WOTUS Rule in Favor of Pre-2015 Rule

On September 12, 2019, the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the “Corps”) (together, the “Agencies”)  announced a final rule (the “Repeal Rule”) rescinding the 2015 Clean Water Rule (the “2015 Rule”) that defined “waters of the United States” (“WOTUS”) under the Clean Water Act (“CWA”). This Repeal Rule is…

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WOTUS Rule Litigation Abounds — New York State and Others Sue EPA and Army Corps over Delayed Implementation of Obama-Era WOTUS Rule

On February 6, 2018, New York State filed suit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (together, “the agencies”) for the suspension of a 2015 regulation seeking to clarify the definition of “waters of the United States” under the Clean Water Act (“CWA”), dubbed the “Clean Water Rule”…

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Trump Executive Order Directs EPA and the Corps to Reconsider the 2015 “Clean Water Rule”

On February 28, 2017, the Trump administration issued an Executive Order (the “Order”) directing the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“USACE”) to begin the process of “revising or revoking” the Obama administration’s 2015 “Clean Water Rule” (the “Rule”) which sought to define the extent of federal jurisdiction over “waters…

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