Now Reading
Biden restores rigorous environmental review of big projects – Press Enterprise

Biden restores rigorous environmental review of big projects – Press Enterprise

By MATTHEW DALY

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Biden administration is restoring federal regulations that require rigorous environmental review of major infrastructure projects such as highways, pipelines and oil wells — including likely impacts on climate change and nearby communities. Trump’s administration accelerated projects and created jobs by reducing the length of the existing reviews.

Tuesday’s final rule will restore key provisions from the National Environmental Policy Act. This is a fundamental environmental law that provides community protections during the review of federal proposals. The White House stated that the rule was intended to restore community safeguards in the face of many federal proposals, including those for roads and bridges authorized by the $1 trillion infrastructure law signed last fall.

The White House Council on Environmental Quality announced that the new rule will be in effect in May and should address challenges posed by Trump’s policy. It also promises to restore public confidence during environmental reviews.

“Restoring these basic community safeguards will provide regulatory certainty, reduce conflict and help ensure that projects get built right the first time,” said CEQ Chair Brenda Mallory. “Patching these holes in the environmental review process will help projects get built faster, be more resilient and provide greater benefits to people who live nearby.”

In 2020, former President Donald Trump restructured the environmental reviews to speed up projects that he claimed would increase the economy and create jobs.

Trump made it a hallmark of his presidency to reduce government regulations. His administration and he frequently expressed dissatisfaction at rules that impeded approval of interstate oil and gas pipelines, and other large projects. The rule change imposed in 2020 restricted the timelines for environmental reviews and public comment and allowed federal officials to disregard a project’s role in cumulative effects, such as climate change.

The Supreme Court has reinstated an earlier Trump-era rule that limited the power of states or Native American tribes to block pipelines or other energy projects that could pollute rivers, streams, and other waterways.

In a decision that split the court 5-4 earlier this month, the justices agreed to halt a lower court judge’s order throwing out the Trump rule. The decision does not interfere with the Biden administration’s plan to rewrite the Environmental Protection Agency rule. While work on a revision has already begun, the administration said that a final rule will not be available until next spring. The Trump-era rule will continue to be in effect.

Contrary to Trump’s repeated assertions, Mallory stated that a more thorough environmental review will actually speed-up the completion of major projects because they will be more resistant to legal challenges by environmental groups and states. Many Trump-era environmental decisions were reversed by courts or delayed after inadequate analysis was performed.

Environmental groups applauded the rule change. According to them, it restores the foundations of NEPA, a 1970 law that requires government agencies to take into account economic, environmental and health impacts before approving major projects.

“NEPA plays a critical role in keeping our communities and our environment healthy and safe, and Donald Trump’s attempts to weaken NEPA were clearly nothing more than a handout to corporate polluters,” said Leslie Fields, the Sierra Club’s national director of policy, advocacy and legal affairs.

Environmental groups, Latino, African American, and tribal activists protested Trump’s rule change. They claimed that it would increase pollution in areas already ravaged by oil refineries, chemical plants, and other hazardous sites. This issue of environmental justice has been a priority for the Biden administration.

“Communities of color, especially, have relied on NEPA to make sure their voices are heard in decisions that have a profound impact on their health and their well-being,” said Rosalie Winn, a senior attorney for the Environmental Defense Fund, which challenged the Trump-era rule.

The White House action “reestablishes essential NEPA safeguards and ensures they will continue to protect people and communities today and in future generations,”‘ she said.

Republican lawmakers and business groups criticized the rule change, claiming it would slow down major infrastructure development.

“Important projects that address critical issues like improving access to public transit, adding more clean energy to the grid and expanding broadband access are languishing due to continued delays and that must change,” said Chad Whiteman, vice president for environment and regulatory affairs for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Arkansas Rep. Bruce Westerman, the top Republican on the House Natural Resources Committee, said the White House action would “weaponize NEPA” by making it harder to navigate and more bureaucratic.

“At a time when we should be coalescing around bipartisan ways to lower gas prices, tame skyrocketing inflation and fix the supply chain crisis, President Biden is unfortunately reinstating archaic NEPA regulations that will only result in delays and red tape and feed activist litigation,” he said.

View Comments (0)

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.