ELR Citation: 52 ELR 20078
No(s). 20-16605 (9th Cir. Jul 1, 2022)

The Ninth Circuit reversed a previous ruling that vacated summary judgment for a California city in a RCRA citizen suit brought by an environmental group. The group had argued the city's water wells were contaminated by hexavalent chromium that was in turn transported to city residents through its water distribution system. The appellate court upheld its previous finding that the group had created a triable issue on whether hexavalent chromium was "discarded material" and thus met RCRA's definition of "solid waste," but subsequently found the city did not have the necessary connection to the waste disposal process and thus could not be held liable for its "transportation." It affirmed summary judgment for the city.