Vol. 28, No. 1 ● January 27, 2020
In This Issue:
WOTUS, WOTUS Everywhere, But Maybe Not?
Key Points in the Proposed NEPA Procedure Updates
Loudoun County, Virginia Amends Zoning Ordinance to Include New Requirements
WOTUS, WOTUS Everywhere, But Maybe Not?
On January 23, 2020, the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers finalized the "Definition of Waters of the U.S." and released the pre-publication version; the rule will become effective 60 days after publication. This is the last step in the Trump administration's actions to repeal the 2015 Definition issued under the Obama administration and to implement a new definition. The administration is touting the new rule as a huge win for landowners and developers, while environmental associations are labeling the new rule as a huge detriment to water quality and environmental protection. In this issue of Field Notes we take a deeper dive and see what it really means to our clients in Virginia, Maryland and beyond.
Key Points in the Proposed NEPA Procedure Updates
On January 10, 2020, under the guidance of the Trump administration, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published a notice of proposed rulemaking proposing updates to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) implementation regulations. NEPA was enacted on January 1, 1970 and was last updated when the regulations were promulgated in 1978. The goal of the 2020 proposed rule is to modernize and clarify the regulations to facilitate more efficient, effective, and timely NEPA reviews.
Loudoun County, Virginia Amends Zoning Ordinance to Include New Requirements
This image from Section 5-1405 of Loudoun County’s Revised 1993 Zoning Ordinance (as amended January 1, 2020) illustrates the required cemetery, burial ground, and grave buffer (from page 797).
The Loudoun County Board of Supervisors adopted amendments to the Revised 1993 Loudoun County Zoning Ordinance and the Loudoun County Facilities Standards Manual on November 21, 2019. Under these amendments, effective January 1, 2020, applicants will find new and more intensive requirements for archeological investigation and other changes pertaining to buffers and setbacks, planting, and landscaping. Currently pending plans submitted prior to January 1 – those accepted by the County and not withdrawn, expired, or otherwise invalid – are not subject to the amendments.