North America: Environment

California's Wildfire Fund administrator has released a comprehensive study examining 10 legislative recommendations to enhance the state's resilience against natural catastrophes, addressing critical challenges in property insurance affordability, utility financial stability, and wildfire risk mitigation.

Although the New York State Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) budget was due on April 1, 2026, the government is continuing to evaluate numerous components, including potential reforms to the State Environmental Quality Review...

The EPA's enforcement priorities have shifted significantly under the Trump Administration's second term, moving away from environmental justice considerations while maintaining focus on specific areas like HFC imports and hazardous air pollutants. This analysis examines how enforcement statistics, criminal prosecutions, and regulatory amendments reflect a recalibration rather than a retreat from environmental enforcement.

Despite delayed implementing regulations, Circular Action Alliance (CAA), the producer responsibility organization (PRO) responsible for administering California’s packaging extended producer responsibility (EPR)...

The Washington State Department of Ecology (Ecology) published for public comment its draft 2026 reissuance of the Upland Finfish Hatching and Rearing General Permit (Permit), which governs wastewater...

Québec's government has introduced a comprehensive draft regulation to modernize its hazardous materials management framework, marking the first major overhaul since the late 1990s. The reform introduces five key focus areas including enhanced traceability systems, new disposal charges, clearer rules for accidental releases, refined regulatory standards, and more stringent requirements for disposal sites. These changes aim to strengthen accountability across the hazardous materials management chain whi

March 15, 2026 marked the start of a new five-year cycle for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Nationwide Permits (NWPs). Pursuant to a final rule published on January 8, 2026, the Corps has reissued and modified 56 existing NWPs and created one new NWP.

On April 8, 2026, Judge Richard M. Platkin of the New York State Supreme Court, Albany County, entirely annulled the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation’s revised Part 664 freshwater wetlands regulations for noncompliance with the State Environmental Quality Review Act.

Although the New York State Fiscal Year 2027 (FY27) budget was due on April 1, 2026, the government is continuing to evaluate numerous components, including potential reforms to the State Environmental Quality Review...

Maine's legislature has passed groundbreaking legislation that would temporarily halt construction of large data centers until November 2027, marking the first state-wide data center ban in the United States.

In this special Eyes on Washington miniseries, energy attorneys Elizabeth Craddock and Jim Noe provide insights on the potential trajectory of a second Trump Administration in relation to oil and gas policies.

Federal and state governments enforce environmental laws that prohibit activities harming people or the environment, with claims often rooted in property damage concepts like nuisance and trespass. Environmental contamination may be discovered years or decades after the initial incident, making the applicable limitations periods crucial for determining when parties must commence legal proceedings.