Trump admin scraps wildfire retardant rule

By Marc Heller | 01/30/2025 01:33 PM EST

The proposal stemmed from a court ruling requiring the Forest Service to get permission from EPA to drop fire suppressants around waterways.

Pink fire retardant covers a backyard in Mandeville Canyon during the Palisades Fire in Los Angeles.

Fire retardant covers a backyard in Mandeville Canyon during the Palisades Fire on Jan. 11 in Los Angeles. Eric Thayer/AP

The Trump administration has backed away from a proposal to help the Forest Service’s use of fire retardant pass legal muster.

Forest Service applications of fire retardant from aircraft continue uninterrupted, but EPA was planning to grant the agency a general permit to comply with the Clean Water Act in light of a court ruling on the matter.

The White House Office of Management and Budget said the rulemaking clearing the way for the permit was withdrawn Jan. 24, less than two months after the Biden administration’s EPA sent it along for review.

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A spokesperson at EPA didn’t have immediate comment Thursday on the Trump administration’s withdrawal. But because the issue has played out in a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Montana, the court is likely to shape what the government does next.

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