White House Loosens Environment Permitting in Emergency Response

The White House on Wednesday gave federal agencies more leeway in environmental permitting to act quickly when responding to natural disasters and emergencies.

The updated guidance from the White House Council on Environmental Quality aligns with the Trump administration’s rollback of rules it says are too cumbersome, especially when it comes to advancing key infrastructure projects.

In emergencies, CEQ allows “alternative arrangements” from its National Environmental Policy Act regulations. Those arrangements don’t let builders evade the rules altogether, but they can usher in faster environmental reviews for urgently-needed actions.

Broadly, the new guidance tells agencies bluntly that compliance ...