Last week the White House introduced major changes to United States environmental protection law, moving to ease approval of big energy and infrastructure projects by skipping detailed environmental assessment, according to The New York Times.

Many changes to the law had been desired by the oil and gas industry as well as trade unions, arguing the review process is lengthy, cumbersome and used by environmental activists to drag out legal disputes and kill infrastructure projects.

Under current law, major federal projects, such as bridges, highways, pipelines and power plants, that will have a significant impact on the environment require a review, or environmental impact statement, outlining potential consequences. The proposed new rules would narrow the range of projects that require a review and impose strict deadlines on completing assessments.

Learn more: The New York Times > Trump moves to exempt big projects from environmental review