Week of August 10
Even during the dog days of summer, the environmental and energy world rarely stays quiet for long. This week’s headlines featured multibillion-dollar PFAS settlements, new restrictions on critical mineral exports, renewed scrutiny of offshore wind projects, and continued debate over the scope of federal agency authority. Please reach out if you would like to learn more about this or other environmental and energy topics.
Commerce Restricts Exports of Battery Recycling Materials
The U.S. Department of Commerce issued a temporary final rule restricting exports of “black mass” from shredded lithium-ion batteries and certain tungsten waste materials. The rule is intended to preserve domestic supplies of recoverable critical minerals and support national defense objectives, but it may also create challenges for battery recyclers that currently rely on overseas processing capacity. Read more: Federal Register.
New Jersey PFAS Settlement Clears Final Approval
A federal court approved major PFAS settlements between the state of New Jersey and companies associated with 3M and historical DuPont operations. The approved settlements have a combined potential value approaching $3 billion over 25 years and represent one of the most significant PFAS recovery actions to date. Read more: NJ Attorney General Press Release.
DOE Cancels Three Proposed Transmission Corridors
The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced that it will not move forward with three proposed National Interest Electric Transmission Corridors that had been under review since 2024. DOE stated that the current designation process should not continue and indicated that future transmission planning efforts will focus on alternative approaches for improving grid reliability and affordability. Read more: DOE Press Release.
Interior Department Reconsiders New Jersey Offshore Wind Approval
Federal agencies will revisit approvals granted for the Atlantic Shores Offshore Wind project located off the New Jersey coast after the Department of the Interior requested a remand to reconsider portions of the prior analysis. Opponents of the project argued that the agencies did not adequately evaluate impacts on tourism and marine resources, while developers continue to defend the project approvals. Read more: E&E News Article.
Eighth Circuit Rejects Challenge to Mine Safety Review Commission
The federal Court of Appeal for the Eighth Circuit rejected a mining company’s effort to invalidate penalties by challenging the constitutionality of the administrative judge system used by the Federal Mine Safety and Health Review Commission. Although the court resolved the case on procedural grounds, the decision comes amid a broader wave of challenges to federal administrative adjudication systems following recent Supreme Court decisions. Read more: Court’s Opinion.