"The Biden administration unveiled a highly anticipated proposal Friday aimed at speeding up federal reviews of renewable energy projects and unraveling Trump-era changes to the nation’s bedrock environmental law.

The draft rule released by the White House Council on Environmental Quality would hasten the permitting process under the National Environmental Policy Act, known as NEPA, for efforts such as wildfire management, electric vehicle charging infrastructure and offshore wind, the administration announced.

It would also encourage agencies to limit projects’ impacts on climate change and on communities already burdened by pollution. And the draft rule would remove Trump-era requirements about how the public can comment on projects.

The suite of changes in Friday’s proposal marks the Biden administration’s latest effort to ease the permitting process for major renewable energy projects that are central to the administration’s climate agenda."

Robin Bravender reports for E&E News July 28, 2023. [2]

SEE ALSO:

"Biden Issues Long-Awaited Second Group of Permitting Fixes" (Bloomberg Environment) [3]

"White House Issues New Rule Streamlining Certain Environmental Reviews" (The Hill) [4]