EPA Narrows States’ Veto Power Over Pipelines and Energy Projects
The EPA proposed a rule to narrow Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, limiting states’ and tribes’ ability to block or delay fossil-fuel projects by focusing only on direct water-quality effects and giving them up to one year to act on certification requests, a move aimed at speeding permitting but likely to provoke legal challenges from Democratic officials and environmental groups who warn it could weaken protections.