The Trump administration on Wednesday renewed a streamlined permit program for oil pipelines, highways and other projects that disturb wetlands and streams, while making data centers eligible as well.
The Army Corps of Engineers finalized for the next five years its nationwide permit program, which allows infrastructure purported to have minimal adverse effects on water quality to get faster approvals under the Clean Water Act. Thousands of permits are issued under the program each year.
In addition to allowing data centers to qualify for the permits, the agency added a new category for environmental projects that help fish pass through dams. The agency will also explicitly allow pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities to receive nationwide permits for the first time.
Nationwide permits are popular with industry groups, but have long been a target of environmentalists.
