Today, the Biden administration released the “Biden-Harris Lead Pipe and Paint Action Plan,” a comprehensive plan to invest in removing and replacing toxic lead pipes, strengthen enforcement of protections against lead hazards, close gaps in childhood lead testing data, and track investments in lead pipe cleanup in disadvantaged communities.
Today, the Virginia State Water Control Board approved a water permit for the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) via a 3-2 vote, finalizing state approval for the MVP to build across hundreds of Virginia waterways.
In an important victory for clean water in Montana, a Montana district court judge ruled on Thursday that the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) repeatedly ignored the law and failed to protect water quality from an expansion of the Rosebud coal strip mine near Colstrip, one of the largest coal strip mines in the nation. The Western Environmental Law Center, Earthjustice, Roger Sullivan and Walton Morris represented the Montana Environmental Information Center and Sierra Club in this case.
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A new report released today found concerning levels of toxic PFAS (per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances) found in home garden fertilizer products widely sold throughout the United States. The report, based on testing conducted by the Sierra Club and the Ecology Center, found PFAS chemicals in nine fertilizers made from sewage sludge -- commonly called “biosolids” in ingredient lists -- and maps more than 30 companies selling sludge-based fertilizers and composts for home use across the US. Eight of the nine products exceed the screening guideline for PFOS or PFOA set in Maine, the state with the strictest safeguards for PFAS levels in sludge spread on agricultural lands.
Equitrans Midstream Corporation announced that they were delaying the in-service date and raising the total cost of the fracked gas MVP yet again
NCDEQ announced its second rejection of MVP's efforts to extend into NC
ST PAUL, MN -- One week ahead of Earth Day, a coalition of Minnesota environmental, worker, Indigenous and progressive groups released a mid-term climate report card grading Governor Walz on his actions to ensure a sustainable and equitable future for Minnesota. Unfortunately, the report card found that Governor Walz’s actions fall short of the bold and decisive measures needed to respond to the climate crisis. Of the nine areas identified in the report card, Governor Walz received mainly F’s and D’s.
OKLAHOMA CITY, OK -- The Oklahoma Department of Environmental Quality has brought forward fewer than a dozen enforcement cases since 2000, the lowest number of any state.
the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC) voted 4-0, with the federal government abstaining, to outlaw all fracking operations in the Delaware River Basin
Maryland Board of Public Works granted a wetlands license for the construction of another controversial fracked gas pipeline
MVP announced it will seek individual stream crossing permits after a federal court issued an order last November staying previous approvals under the blanket Nationwide Permit 12
With the inauguration of President Joe Biden, leading environmental groups are celebrating the end of the Trump administration’s assault on the Clean Water Act and the beginning of a new era of clean water safeguards. Some of the Trump administration’s most short-sighted attacks on public health and environmental laws rolled back critical clean water protections that enjoy overwhelming bipartisan support, hold polluters accountable, and protect our country’s precious waterways.