Welcome to the S&W Environmental, Natural Resources, Oil and Gas Law Blog. This blog is a resource for the regulated community to stay current on new developments impacting the environmental, natural resources and energy sectors. It provides timely updates on a broad range of federal, state and local environmental topics — including proposed legislation and government rulemakings — that impact regulated industries throughout the southwest and the nation as a whole.
by John W. Andrews The omnibus appropriations legislation passed by Congress in December 2020 contained notable bipartisan energy initiatives, including extension of tax incentives for renewable energy development, energy efficiency, and energy storage. In light of Congress’ strong interest in addressing climate change, the energy package also focused on the capture of carbon dioxide from […]
by Kelly A. Daly On December 28, 2020, the FAA released the Remote Identification of Unmanned Aircraft Final Rule. This long-awaited Remote ID rule, identified as the next incremental step to integrating drones into the National Airspace System, requires the broadcasting of drone information that is crucial for airspace awareness, accountability, safety and security. Drone operators […]
by Patrick J. Paul As the page is turned on 2020 and some hope exists with respect to a COVID-19 vaccine, Arizona finds itself with the dubious distinction of leading the nation in COVID-19 cases per 100,000. Against this regrettable backdrop, Governor Ducey earlier today announced $500,000 in funding to support a wastewater testing pilot […]
by Patrick J. Paul On December 18, 2020, EPA issued interim guidance (available here and here) designed to protect the public from exposure to emerging chemicals of concern. More particularly, that interim guidance outlines the current state of science on techniques and treatments that can be employed to destroy and dispose of certain PFAS and PFAS-containing […]
By Kelly A. Daly Yesterday, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) weighed-in on the important role that carbon pricing, associated with state initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, could have on the nation’s electric market. Not surprisingly, as the governmental entity with jurisdiction over the organized electric markets, FERC acknowledged that regional market rules that […]
by Sean M. Sherlock As industrial facilities go, distribution warehouses are clean, non-polluting operations. They generally do not operate industrial furnaces, boilers, compressors, pumps, tanks or other major stationary sources of air pollution. But the South Coast Air Quality Management District (“AQMD”) considers distribution warehouses to be “indirect” sources of air pollutants because trucks making […]
by Sean M. Sherlock A recent court of appeal opinion out of San Diego demonstrates how the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”) has once again been used to impede housing development—this time to the benefit of a high-end luxury spa. For CEQA practitioners the case provides two important lessons. First, it demonstrates how a permitting […]
by Mitchell J. Klein The EPA and the Corps of Engineers are seeing an unprecedented amount of requests for determining whether or not an activity impacts a Water of the United States and triggers Clean Water Act restrictions and permitting. As the lawsuits challenging the current rule begin to move forward, and the current administration […]
by Patrick J. Paul On September 2, 2020, the DeAnza Domestic Water Improvement District of Pima County formed in 2018 to construct, operate and maintain a domestic water system to provide drinking water in Pima County Arizona, filed a complaint in state court in Pima County against numerous alleged manufacturers and/or marketers of aqueous film-forming […]
by Patrick J. Paul Declaring that the days of a one-size-fits-all approach to environmental remediation are over, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced on September 2, 2020, the creation of a new office Mountains, Deserts, and Plains (OMDP). This new office will have jurisdiction over mining and environmental issues unique to those states west of […]
