DOJ Weighs ‘Broader’ SEP Limits As New Policy Forces Renegotiations

A top Justice Department (DOJ) official is considering additional “broader” limits on the use of popular supplemental environmental projects (SEPs) as a way to mitigate penalties in enforcement settlements after DOJ last month curbed their use in municipal settlements, forcing renegotiation of some pending deals and likely curbing future settlements that would implement EPA’s upcoming lead and copper drinking water rule. Jeffrey Clark, DOJ’s assistant attorney general for the Environment & Natural Resources Division (ENRD), told Inside EPA on...