Voters in various states will be weighing in election day on high-stakes ballot initiatives that seek to implement major changes to environment and energy policies according to an October 28, 2018 report from The Hill. Here are five of the most consequential initiatives facing voters on Election Day. Washington state carbon tax Initiative 1631 would […]

More stringent NNSR and Title V major source thresholds expected. The Dallas Fort-Worth (DFW) Ozone Nonattainment Area (including Collin, Dallas, Denton, Ellis, Johnson, Kaufman, Parker, Rockwall, Tarrant, and Wise counties) and the Houston-Galveston-Brazoria (HGB) Ozone Nonattainment Area (including Brazoria, Chambers, Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris, Liberty, Montgomery, and Waller counties) are expected to be reclassified to […]

On October 29, 2018 North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper Monday signed an executive order committing the state to cut emissions by 40 percent by 2025, a goal that puts North Carolina in line with targets set by the 2015 Paris Agreement according to an October 30, 2018 report from The Hill. In a press release […]

Democratic lawmakers are quietly making plans to use hearings and investigations to focus attention on the Trump administration’s environmental agenda if they win control of the House of Representatives according to an October 26, 2018 Bloomberg report. Because they are less likely to capture the Senate, Democrats would have limited opportunities to enact laws. But […]

On August 23, 2018, EPA announced and published a draft version of its New Owner Clean Air Act Audit Program tailored for the Oil and Gas Exploration and Production (E&P) sector. According to EPA, this program is focused on the E&P segment due to significant excess emissions and noncompliance that has been observed at these […]

On September 12, 2018, the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) posted their revised air standard operating procedures (ASOP) for reviewing excess emission reports (EER) according to a Trinity Consultants report. The revision replaces a prior version for continuous emissions monitoring (CEM), issued November 14, 2002 and expands the discussion to cover all monitoring system […]

On September 11, 2018 The Trump administration proposed weakening requirements for testing and repairing methane leaks in drilling operations in a step toward rolling back an Obama-era policy to combat climate change according to a Reuters report. In its news release The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) said the changes will save the industry $75 million […]

On August 20, 2018 Texas Governor Greg Abbott announced his appointment of Emily Lindley of Austin as the next commissioner for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ). Lindley most recently served as the chief of staff for the Environmental Protection Agency, Region Six office in Dallas. As chief of staff she served as an […]

A new study released September 12, 2018 found that the U.S. will fall short by about one-third on its greenhouse gas emissions targets stipulated in the Paris Climate Accord, according to a report from The Hill. The report titled “Fulfilling America’s Pledge” was financed by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and projects that […]

On September 10, 2018, EPA announced it has issued a Regional Haze Reform Roadmap to enable efficient, timely, and effective implementation of the Regional Haze program. Over the next year, EPA says its Office of Air and Radiation will release a series of implementation tools and guidance documents that will help focus states’ efforts and […]