The Environmental Protection Agency has proposed handing more power to states and tribes to block major energy projects based on water quality concerns.

The proposal would undo a Trump-era rule that restricted local regulators' authority to stand in the way of fossil fuel development. The new proposal would allow states to conduct a broader, more flexible review before making a permitting decision.

The public will have time to weigh in on the proposal. For now, the Trump-era rule will remain in place.

That rule required local regulators to focus their reviews on the pollution that projects might discharge into rivers, streams and wetlands. It also rigidly enforced a one-year deadline for regulators to make permitting decisions. Some states lost their authority to block certain projects based on allegations they blew the deadline, the Associated Press reported.

The EPA is taking the position that states should have authority to look beyond pollution discharged into waterways and “holistically evaluate” the impact of a project on local water quality. The proposal would gives local regulators more power. It allows localities to make sure they have information needed before facing deadline pressure to then issue or deny permits.

The League to Save Lake Tahoe has been leading litter clean-up efforts for the area's beaches and water for years.

Volunteers can easily pick up large pieces of trash, but smaller pieces of plastic can eventually still find their way into the water after sinking into the sand.

That's a problem the league is looking to solve with help from a new robot.

It's called "BEBOT."

It's fully electric, solar-powered and remote-controlled by someone walking behind it.

BEBOT's job? Comb through the top few inches of sand to sift out otherwise unseen litter.

“This robot is really getting the plastics and the litter just out of our view that could end up in our lake and really cause some damage," said Jesse Patterson, Chief Strategy Officer for the League, which operates under the slogan "Keep Tahoe Blue."

Patterson said the robot has been compared to a giant Roomba or a Zamboni. But the rover-like machine is far smaller than that.

"It's very compact, no emissions, very light pressure on the ground so it's not going to disturb things like our native Tahoe Yellow Cress," Patterson said.

A company called Eco Clean Solutions, which is based in France, built BEBOT along with several other robots like it.

BEBOT made its U.S. debut in Florida. This week's test event at Lake Tahoe was the first run for the robot on the West Coast.

In ideal conditions, the robot can crawl along at 3,000 meters (just under 2 miles) per hour. As it moves along, it sweeps and sifts the top 1 to 4 inches of sand, removing pieces of trash.

"We really see the robot as the last line of defense for the lake for keeping small pollution and litter, plastics in particular from getting in the water in the first place," Patterson said.

After that, volunteers sort the trash and log what they've found.

BEBOT is in a pilot phase this year while the League determines the most effective way to utilize it.

Patterson said that Keep Tahoe Blue will still organize regular clean-up events. He also urges all visitors to prioritize being responsible stewards of the environment.

"Leave it better than you found it," Patterson said. "Come enjoy this place, but pack it in, pack it out. It sounds silly and simple but it really matters here in Tahoe."

TRAVERSE CITY, Mich. —

Chemical manufacturer 3M Co. will pay at least $10.3 billion to settle lawsuits over contamination of many U.S. public drinking water systems with potentially harmful compounds used in firefighting foam and a host of consumer products, the company said Thursday.

The deal would compensate water providers for pollution with per- and polyfluorinated substances, known collectively as PFAS — a broad class of chemicals used in nonstick, water- and grease-resistant products such as clothing and cookware.

Described as "forever chemicals" because they don't degrade naturally in the environment, PFAS have been linked to a variety of health problems, including liver and immune-system damage and some cancers.

The compounds have been detected at varying levels in drinking water around the nation. The Environmental Protection Agency in March proposed strict limits on two common types, PFOA and PFOS, and said it wanted to regulate four others. Water providers would be responsible for monitoring their systems for the chemicals.

The agreement would settle a case that was scheduled for trial earlier this month involving a claim by Stuart, Florida, one of about 300 communities that have filed similar suits against companies that produced firefighting foam or the PFAS it contained.

3M chairman Mike Roman said the deal was "an important step forward" that builds on the company's decision in 2020 to phase out PFOA and PFOS and its investments in "state-of-the-art water filtration technology in our chemical manufacturing operations." The company, based in St. Paul, Minnesota, will halt all PFAS production by the end of 2025, he said.

The settlement will be paid over 13 years and could reach as high as $12.5 billion, depending on how many public water systems detect PFAS during testing that EPA has required in the next three years, said Dallas-based attorney Scott Summy, one of the lead attorneys for those suing 3M and other manufacturers.

The payment will help cover costs of filtering PFAS from systems where it's been detected and testing others, he said.

"The result is that millions of Americans will have healthier lives without PFAS in their drinking water," Summy said.

Earlier this month, three other companies — DuPont de Nemours Inc. and spinoffs Chemours Co. and Corteva Inc. — reached a $1.18 billion deal to resolve PFAS complaints by about 300 drinking water providers. A number of states, airports, firefighter training facilities and private well owners also have sued.

The cases are pending in U.S. District Court in Charleston, South Carolina, where Judge Richard Gergel is overseeing thousands of complaints alleging PFAS damages. A trial of a complaint by the city of Stuart, Florida, had been scheduled to begin this month but was delayed to allow time for additional settlement negotiations.

Most of the lawsuits have stemmed from firefighter training exercises at airports, military bases and other sites around the U.S. that repeatedly used foams laced with high concentrations of PFAS, Summy said.

The 3M settlement is subject to court approval, he said.

3M's website says the company helped the U.S. Navy develop foams containing PFAS chemicals in the 1960s.

"This was an important and life-saving tool that helped combat dangerous fires, like those caused by jet fuel," the company said.

3M said its participation in the settlement "is not an admission of liability" and said if it was rejected in court, "3M is prepared to continue to defend itself."

The cost of cleansing PFAS from U.S. water systems eventually could go much higher than the sums agreed to in the settlements, Summy acknowledged.

"I'm not sure anyone knows what that ultimate number will be," he said. "But I do think this is going to make a huge dent in that cost ... and you don't have to litigate for the next decade or longer."

WASHINGTON, D.C. – In a world seemingly on lockdown, the earth may be breathing easier for the moment.

“These lockdown measures are having an impact,” said Susan Anenberg, a professor of environmental and global health at George Washington University, in Washington, D.C.

She said, with vehicle traffic down by at least 50% because of the coronavirus restrictions, it’s making a difference in the world’s air quality.

“The fewer cars we have on the road commuting, the less air pollution and the less greenhouse gas emissions we’ll have,” Anenberg said.

That can make a big difference for everyone, but especially those with underlying conditions like asthma, which makes them more susceptible to the coronavirus. It brought a small sigh of relief for some in Phoenix, where poor air quality is common.

“Sometimes, I’ve had to rush to the hospital three times a day, scared because my daughter couldn’t breathe,” said Beatriz Beltran, a resident of South Phoenix. “We have a lot of air pollution in this area.”

During the lockdown, scientists are observing other environmental changes as well, including the fact that with more people staying put, the earth is simply more still. Seismologists said that is leading to fewer ground vibrations detected around the world.

For the world’s marine life, fewer people on the beach and on the water means creatures there are getting a break – like endangered sea turtles, who are now able to nest in Florida, without as much human interference, for now.

“This is going to provide a short period of time for sea turtles, manatees and the like to experience the beach as it once was decades ago,” said Jackie Kingston, director of Sea Turtle Adventures in Florida.

However, Anenberg said these changes are temporary and a pandemic is not the way to achieve long-term environmental changes. Once the lockdowns are lifted, she said things will probably go back to the way they were and, in some instances, could potentially get worse.

“If people somehow become afraid to ride public transportation - transition to more passenger vehicle trips - I think we actually could come out of this potentially with more air pollution,” Anenberg said. “And so, I think this is the time to be thinking about how to strengthen our air quality regulations and ensure that that type of rebound effect does not occur.”

It’s also worth reflecting, she said, on all that’s changed since that first Earth Day 50 years ago.

Because of political pressure brought on by the first Earth Day, eight months later, in December 1970, the U.S. government established the Environmental Protection Agency. To this day, the EPA is responsible for enforcing the nation’s laws and regulations, when it comes to the environment.