ELR Citation: ELR 20011
No(s). 08-6296 (6th Cir. Jan 7, 2010)

The Sixth Circuit remanded a lower court decision disapproving a proposed settlement in a CWA civil enforcement action brought by the United States and Kentucky against a county for sanitary and storm sewer system violations. The lower court found that the proposed civil penalty of $425,000 could be better directed toward alleviating the conditions that violated the CWA. Such a concern by itself cannot support rejection of an otherwise proper settlement in light of the express provision for civil penalties in the CWA. On remand, the lower court may approve the consent decree or explain more fully the exercise of its discretion in declining to approve the consent decree.