The EPA has released its long-awaited proposed rule for regulating pollution discharges into waters of the United States from 1,200 power plants nationwide, as well as from any new plants.

The EPA has released a new tool that allows the public to see graphical illustrations and maps of enforcement and compliance data for waste, air, and water programs across the country.

Much like Mr. McGuire in The Graduate, the DNR believes “there’s a great future in plastics.” A recent study commissioned by the DNR found that Wisconsin could increase its plastics recycling, and in so doing, realize substantial economic rewards and jobs growth.

The DNR has just released its long-anticipated “Adaptive Management Technical Handbook.” The 107-page Handbook is designed to help describe adaptive management and how to develop a successful adaptive management strategy for phosphorus discharges.

EPA officials have announced that the agency will issue another notice of data availability before it can promulgate a final rule addressing coal combustion residuals from coal-fired power plants.

Although no timeline has been announced, BNA Bloomberg is reporting that Mathy Stanislaus, EPA assistant administrator for solid waste and emergency response, has said that the EPA will attempt to align the coal ash regulations with upcoming effluent guidelines for coal-fired power plants to the “greatest extent possible.” Environmental groups agreed in December to extend a court-ordered deadline to April 19, 2013, for the effluent guidelines proposed rule.
 

The EPA has issued its long-delayed revised final rules (Revised Final Rules: Area. Major. CISWI.) imposing the first-ever limits on emissions for mercury, acid gases and fine particulate matter, or soot, from boilers and incinerators. The three final rules provide several additional years for full compliance in an effort to minimize job and economic impacts.

The DNR has released its E-Cycle Wisconsin 2012 report, which includes program results, updates on compliance with electronics disposal bans, policy recommendations and more.

In April 2012, the DNR launched a retrospective review of administrative rules impacting small business in response to Gov. Walker’s “Executive Order #61 Relating to Job Creation and Small Business Expansion.” The agency is now accepting comments on the draft report from phase 2 of the review.

Various news sources preview what Pres. Obama’s energy and environmental policy could look like in his second term.

A new report from National Economic Research Associates (NERA) prepared for the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity find that EPA regulations could cost 1.5 million jobs over the next four years, with a quarter million of those job losses occurring in the Midwest.

A recent WisconsinEye Newsmakers event brought together experts on sand mining to discuss the boom in mining in Wisconsin, the regulatory challenges it presents, and the opportunity for further growth.

The most recent edition of the DNR’s Air News has an article on the use of coal ash in Wisconsin.

On October 11, the EPA filed a declaration in federal district court stating that it will not be able to finalize a rulemaking on coal ash within six months. The agency indicated it may take more than a year to finalize the rule.

Wisconsin has had an electronics recycling law in place since 2009, however a new survey shows only 40% of the state population reports being aware of the E-Cycle Wisconsin program.

Administrative agencies continuously promulgate new rules and often do so quickly. Tracking the various proposed rules can be time-intensive and complicated. The Foundation’s Regulatory Calendar includes the dates of important steps in the rulemaking process for various rules we are following at the state and federal level.

GLLF has blogged about the DNR's Green Tier program in the past, and now DNR is making it even easier to explain what benefits the program provides the state's business community by releasing videos highlighting its Green Tier and brownfields programs.

The EPA continues to drag its feet in issuing the final coal ash residuals rules, but some groups have filed lawsuits to speed the process. The EPA has said it would finalize the rule in 2012, and the lawsuits seek to hold EPA to that promise with a court-ordered deadline.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and the Environmental Protection Agency are both accepting comments on a multitude of issues impacting Wisconsin businesses. The agencies are accepting comments on various air, water, and waste rules; and in addition, the DNR is also asking for help identifying burdensome and outdated rules.

Mining is a hot topic in Wisconsin this year, so a recent post on the Law & The Environment blog by Seth Jaffe discussing the EPA's authority to revoke a mining-related § 404 permit caught my eye. Jaffe's post, and the underlying decision, are both worth a read.

The long anticipated mining bill was released by Assembly Republicans on Thursday, Dec. 8. The 183-page bill would create new statutes to govern ferrous (iron) mining, which is currently regulated in the same manner as non-ferrous (non-iron minerals like gold or copper) mining.

This bill comes in response to Gogebic Taconite's proposal to build Wisconsin’s largest ever iron mine. Proponents of the bill point to the job creation potential of the mine, while opponents worry environmental standards will be sacrificed to gain those jobs. Proponents counter that the text of the bill is the best indication so far that it is possible to retain Wisconsin’s strong environmental standards while still taking advantage of the state’s rich natural resources.