EPA entered into a proposed settlement agreement under the CWA and the APA in Gunpowder Riverkeeper v. Regan, No. 1:20-cv-02063 (D.D.C.), concerning allegations that the Agency's approval of Maryland’s submission of TMDLs of PCBs for the Gunpowder and Bird Rivers was arbitrary and capricious in violation of the APA.

United States v. Sandy, Oregon, City of, No. 23-cv-968 (D. Or. June 30, 2023). A settling CWA defendant must perform injunctive relief measures to ensure future compliance, pay a penalty of $250,000 to the United States, pay a penalty of $50,000 to the state of Oregon, and perform a state supplemental environmental project valued at $200,000 for failing to comply with the requirements of its NPDES permits.

United States v. Puerto Rico Aqueduct and Sewer Authority, No. 3:15-CV-02283 (D.P.R. June 29, 2023). Under a proposed modification to a consent decree, a settling CWA defendant is granted a deadline extension on implementing projects to address wastewater discharges from drinking water treatment plants.

United States v. Messer LLC, No. 5:23-cv-0023-JPB (N.D.W. Va. June 22, 2023). A settling CWA defendant that violated NPDES permit numeric effluent limits with respect to wastewater discharges from its industrial gas manufacturing plant in New Cumberland, West Virginia, must perform injunctive relief, including operation of a newly installed copper treatment system by certain deadlines, implementation of a tiered effluent limit response plan, and revision and routine performance of stormwater best management practice measures; and pay a $1.9 million civil penalty.

FERC directed the North American Electric Reliability Corporation to develop a new or modified reliability standard to address reliability concerns pertaining to transmission system planning for extreme heat and cold weather events that impact the reliable operation of the bulk-power system.

United States v. Suffolk, County of, No. 23-CV-4369 (E.D.N.Y. June 14, 2023). Settling SDWA defendants must close prohibited large capacity cesspools and motor vehicle waste disposal wells in accordance with a specified timetable in connection with violations of relevant regulations.

EPA Region 4 proposed to reissue the NPDES general permit for the outer continental shelf of the Gulf of Mexico for discharges in the offshore subcategory of the oil and gas extraction point source category.

EPA finalized clarifications to its NPDES Stormwater Phase II regulations due to recent changes made by the Census Bureau, clarifying that the designation criteria for small municipal separate storm sewer systems will remain the same.

CEQ requested input to inform the development of an Ocean Justice Strategy, which will describe the vision, goals, and high-level objectives for coordinating and guiding ocean justice activities across the federal government.

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy notified the Earth Observations community that a draft of the congressionally-mandated National Plan for Civil Earth Observations will be released for a short national review period in Summer 2023.