Latest U.S. Environmental Protection Agency News
EPA head Regan, who championed environmental justice, to leave office Dec. 31
WASHINGTON (AP) — Michael Regan, who championed environmental justice as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, will leave the agency Dec. 31, three weeks before the end of President Joe Biden's term. In a letter Friday to agency employees, Regan said he was proud of...
Harmful gas billowing from Texas and New Mexico comes mostly from smaller leaks, researchers say
The blob on the satellite image is a rainbow of colors. An analyst digitally sharpens it and there, highlighted in red, is the source: a concrete oil pad spewing methane. In the 75,000-square-mile (194-square-kilometer) Permian Basin straddling Texas and New Mexico, the most...
EPA grants California authority to ban sales of new gas cars by 2035. Action faces reversal by Trump
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency on Wednesday granted two requests from California to enforce strict standards for vehicle emissions, including a rule aimed at banning sales of new gasoline-powered cars in the state by 2035. The incoming Trump administration is likely to try...
California has a plan for new water rules. Will it save salmon from extinction?
The Newsom administration is refining a contentious set of proposed rules, years in the making, that would reshape how farms and cities draw water from the Central Valley’s Delta and its rivers. Backed by more than $1 billion in state funds, the rules, if adopted, would require water users to...
Growing oil industry support for methane reduction rule could help it survive Trump’s return
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — From the street they’re easy to miss. But in the self-proclaimed “American Dream City” — famous for its roller coasters and sport stadiums — residents know where to spot them. Oil and gas wells and compressor stations are tucked in between houses, schools,...
Supreme Court will take up a challenge related to California's tough vehicle emissions standards
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court on Friday said it would take up a business-backed appeal that could make it easier to challenge federal regulations, acting in a dispute related to California's nation-leading standards for vehicle emissions. The justices agreed to hear an appeal...
EPA awards $135 million to California to phase out big diesel trucks
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency is awarding $135 million in grants to fund 13 projects in California to help the state wean off fossil fuels and phase out big rigs that run on diesel. The money will go to the state transportation department, cities and...
EPA hails 'revitalized' enforcement efforts as Biden administration heads to exit
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Environmental Protection Agency enhanced enforcement efforts this year, doubling financial penalties issued to polluters and issuing the first-ever arrest for a climate change-related crime, the agency said in a report Thursday. The EPA said it concluded more...
How did mussels sneak into California, despite decades of state shipping rules?
After the recent discovery of a destructive mussel in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta, some experts say California officials have failed to effectively enforce laws designed to protect waterways from invaders carried in ships’ ballast water. A state law enacted 20 years ago...
US towns plunge into debates about fluoride in water
NEW YORK (AP) — For about 50 years, adding cavity-preventing fluoride to drinking water was a popular public health measure in Yorktown, a leafy town north of New York City. But in September, the town’s supervisor used his emergency powers to stop the practice. ...
