United States v. ExxonMobil Pipeline Co. LLC, No. 4:24-cv-473-KGB (E.D. Ark. June 3, 2024). Under a proposed consent decree, settling OPA defendants must pay a total of $1,755,082 in connection with a discharge of oil from the Pegasus Pipeline into the environment in and around Mayflower, Arkansas, that migrated to waters, wetlands, and ultimately to Lake Conway.

FERC proposed to amend regulations to clarify that for all proceedings before the Commission that require a water quality certification pursuant to §401(a)(1) of the CWA, the reasonable period of time during which the certifying authority may act on the water quality certification request is one year from the certifying authority’s receipt of the request.

United States v. PSF, Inc., No. 3:24-cv-00112 (D. Alaska May 24, 2024). Under a proposed consent decree, settling CWA defendants that allegedly violated the conditions and limitations of their NPDES permits at their facilities in Valdez and King Cove, Alaska, must perform injunctive relief and pay $750,000 in civil penalties. 

United States v. Norfolk Southern Railway Co., No. 4:23-cv-00517 (N.D. Ohio May 23, 2024). In connection with the February 3, 2023, train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, a proposed consent decree requires a settling CWA and CERCLA defendant to (1) reimburse all response costs incurred by the United States; (2) pay a civil penalty of $15 million; (3) establish a $25 million community health program for qualifying members of the public impacted by the derailment; (4) implement an array of specified rail safety procedures; (5) develop and adopt programs for coordination of rail track restoration and vent and burn procedures; (6) implement a $6 million local waterways remediation plan; (7) pay $175,000 for natural resource damages; and (8) implement compliance and future monitoring requirements. 

EPA published a statement of findings on new chemical substances or significant new uses that are not likely to present an unreasonable risk of injury to health or the environment for March 2024 under TSCA.

EPA announced the availability of its draft human health and/or ecological risk assessments for the registration review of 3-iodo-2-propynyl butylcarbamate and pyrimethanil. 

EPA finalized a CWA regulation to revise the technology-based effluent limitations guidelines and standards for the steam electric power generating point source category applicable to flue gas desulfurization wastewater, bottom ash transport water and legacy wastewater at existing sources, and combustion residual leachate at new and existing sources. 

EPA finalized a rule to address the unreasonable risk of injury to health presented by methylene chloride under its conditions of use under TSCA. 

EPA announced the availability of proposed interim registration review decisions for bromine, and proposed final registration review decisions for agrobacterium radiobacter, polybutene resins, and porcine zona pellucida. 

EPA finalized amendments to the procedural framework rule for conducting risk evaluations under TSCA to better align with the statutory text and applicable court decisions, to reflect the Agency's experience implementing the risk evaluation program following enactment of the 2016 TSCA amendments, and to allow for consideration of future scientific advances in the risk evaluation process without need to further amend the Agency's procedural rule.