Clean Water Act, NPDES, Appeals

Life's tragedy is we get old too soon and wise too late. Words that are going to be ringing in EPA's ears after its next visit to...

Mintz on 5/29/2024

As predicted in February, our nation's highest court is about to hear its third Clean Water Act in four years. Anyone who doubts the outcome of this case hasn't read the other two Supreme Court opinions and that brings to...more

We already knew many Federal Judges weren't deferring to EPA, now the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals isn't deferring to Judges...

Mintz on 1/5/2024

Just before the holidays I wrote about three Judges of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals who decided, over the Army Corps of Engineers' objection, to apply the Supreme Court's Sackett test for determining whether something...more

Does EPA Have Authority to Include Narrative Criteria in NPDES Permits? Yes, For Now.

Foley Hoag LLP - Environmental Law on 8/3/2023

Earlier this week, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed EPA’s NPDES permit issued to San Francisco’s Oceanside sewer system. San Francisco had challenged the permit on the ground that EPA does not have authority to...more

Water Authority Dixon County/Trace Creek: Harpeth Conservancy Files Petition for Appeal of Tennessee Department of Environment and...

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 3/21/2023

The Southern Environmental Law Center filed on behalf of Harpeth Conservancy (“Petitioner”) a March 9th Petition for Appeal of the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (“TDEC”) (“Petition”) Commissioner...more

4th Circuit Narrows Protections from CWA Citizen Suits

Williams Mullen on 12/16/2022

By majority decision in Naturaland Trust v. Dakota Finance, LLC, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit struck a blow against one of the affirmative defenses a company may use to defend against citizen...more

Our Environmental Statutes Are Broken

Foley Hoag LLP - Environmental Law on 11/30/2022

Last week, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals granted a writ of mandamus to the Center for Biological Diversity, imposing a deadline on EPA to issue an “effects determination” concerning the potential impacts of the pesticide...more

Portsmouth, New Hampshire, POTW/Clean Water Act: U.S. EPA Environmental Appeals Board Petition Challenging NPDES Permit Conditions

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 9/13/2022

The City of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, (“Portsmouth”) filed a September 7th Petition for Review (“Petition”) before the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) Environmental Appeals Board. The Petition...more

NPDES Stormwater Permit/Clean Water Act: Alabama Appellate Court Addresses Challenge to Steel-Galvanizing Effluent Limits

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 5/11/2022

The Court of Civil Appeals of Alabama (“Appellate Court”) addressed in a February 18th Opinion a challenge to the issuance by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management (“ADEM”) of two Clean Water Act National...more

NPDES Permitting/Clean Water Act: Arkansas Department of Energy & Environment - Division of Environmental Quality Seeks Judicial...

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 4/28/2022

The Arkansas Department of Energy & Environment – Division of Environmental Quality (“DEQ”) filed a Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief (“Complaint”) in the United States District Court (“Eastern District –...more

NPDES Permit/Clean Water Act: U.S. EPA Environmental Appeals Board Petition Filed Challenging Massachusetts City's Phosphorus...

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 12/3/2021

OARS, Inc. (“OARS”) filed a Petition for Review (“Petition”) before the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) Environmental Appeals Board (“EAB”) challenging a provision addressing phosphorus in a Clean Water...more

Another NGO Asks a Federal Appeals Court to Manage EPA. What's Next?

Mintz on 8/25/2021

Inside EPA reports that a Pacific Northwest NGO has asked the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals to order the United States Environmental Protection Agency to act on the NGO's demand that EPA revoke its delegation of Clean Water...more

Whole Effluent Toxicity/Clean Water Act: Federal Appellate Court Addresses Challenge to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency...

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 8/17/2021

The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (“Ninth Circuit”) addressed in an August 5th Opinion a judicial challenge to nonbinding guidance that had been issued by the United States Environmental Protection...more

Petroleum Storage Tank Terminal/Federal Citizen Suit Action: Federal Appellate Court Addresses Doctrine of Primary Jurisdiction

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 8/9/2021

The Court of Appeals for the 1st Circuit (“Court of Appeals”) addressed an issue arising out of a Clean Water Act (“CWA”) and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (“RCRA”) citizen suit action. See Conservation Law...more

Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations/Clean Water Act: Washington Appellate Court Addresses Challenge to Combined State NPDES...

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 7/8/2021

The Court of Appeals of Washington – Division 2 (“Court”) addressed in a June 29th Decision a challenge to the Washington Department of Ecology’s (“WDE”) Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (“CAFO”) Waste Discharge General...more

Concentrated Animal Feeding Operations/Clean Water Act: Food & Water Watch Petition Challenging the U.S. Environmental Protection...

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 6/24/2021

The organization Food & Water Watch (“FWW”) filed a document styled: Petition for Review of an Action by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“Petition”) The Petition is filed pursuant to Section 509(b)(1) of...more

Liability for Invalid State Agency Permit Decisions: Is the Regulated Party Left Holding the Bag?

Williams Mullen on 5/6/2021

Regulated parties who comply with their permit sometimes get an unwelcome surprise. They meet with their state agency, make full disclosure about their discharges or emissions, and then the state agency makes decisions about...more

EPA Narrowly Defines Discharges into Groundwater that Are Subject to Clean Water Act Permitting

Morgan Lewis on 12/15/2020

Draft guidance from the US Environmental Protection Agency provides a clearer look at how the agency intends to apply the US Supreme Court's "functional equivalent" analysis to determine when National Pollutant Discharge...more

US EPA issues draft guidance regarding NPDES permitting requirements following Maui Supreme Court decision

Bricker Graydon LLP on 12/10/2020

On December 8, 2020, U.S. EPA announced issuance of draft guidance to clarify its view of how the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund decision should be applied to its Clean Water Act National...more

Steam Electric Power Plant/Clean Water Act: U.S. EPA Environmental Appeals Board Addresses Challenge to NPDES Permit

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 10/21/2020

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) Environmental Appeals Board (“EAB”) addressed in a September 30th Opinion a challenge to a Clean Water Act National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (“NPDES”)...more

MS4/NPDES Permit: City of Little Rock and Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment - Division of Environmental Quality Enter...

Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard,... on 7/7/2020

The Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment – Division of Environmental Quality (“DEQ”) and City of Little Rock (“Little Rock”) entered into a June 19th Permit Appeal Resolution (“PAR”) addressing a previously filed...more

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