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88 FR 62079

EPA entered into a proposed interim consent decree under the CWA in Northwest Environmental Advocates v. EPA, No. 19-01537 (W.D. Wash.) in connection with the Agency’s alleged inaction concerning the state of Washington’s water quality assessment and listing program and TMDL program that would require Washington to submit three TMDLs to EPA by December 2025 and would prohibit the plaintiff from filing any new TMDL constructive submission lawsuits in Washington for a period of 34 months.

Analyzing the Consequences of Sackett v. EPA

The U.S. Supreme Court’s May ruling in Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency sharply limited the scope of the federal Clean Water Act’s (CWA’s) protection for the nation’s waters. The Court redefined the Act’s coverage of “waters of the United States” (WOTUS), effectively removing protection from many wetlands that have been covered under the Act for almost a half century. On June 8, 2023, the Environmental Law Institute hosted a panel of experts that analyzed the consequences of Sackett and discussed what actions can be taken to protect non-WOTUS waters.

88 FR 57969

United States v. Ford, No. 19 Civ. 9600 (S.D.N.Y. Aug. 18, 2023). A settling CWA defendant that filled wetlands, channelized streams, and discharged process wastewater and other pollutants from a concentrated animal feeding operation without a permit and violated the terms of a construction stormwater permit must restore approximately 18 acres of wetlands and two streams and pay a $200,000 civil penalty.

the Denial of Contested Case Hearing Requests and Issuance of National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System / State Disposal System Permit No. MN0071013 for the Proposed NorthMet Project St. Louis County Hoyt Lakes and Babbitt Minnesota

The Minnesota Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part an appellate court ruling in a challenge to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's (MPCA's) decision to issue an NPDES permit for a proposed mine and processing plant to extract copper, nickel, and precious metals in northeastern Mi...

San Francisco, City and County of v. U.S. Environmental Protection Agency

The Ninth Circuit, 2-1, denied the city of San Francisco's challenge to an EPA order denying review of the city's NPDES permit for a combined sewer system and wastewater treatment facility. The city argued EPA violated the CWA by including in the permit two general narrative prohibitions on discharg...

88 FR 55276

EPA proposed comprehensive revision to the regulations governing CWA §404 tribal and state programs.

88 FR 53522

United States v. FrieslandCampina Ingredients North America, Inc. No. 3:23-cv-00937-TJM-ML (N.D.N.Y. Aug. 2, 2023). A settling CAA and CWA defendant that allegedly failed to obtain a modification to its title V CAA permit before its hydrolyzed protein powder facility in Delhi, New York, became a major source of volatile organic compound (VOC) emissions; perform a reasonably available control technology (RACT) demonstration and implement RACT before commencing operation of a major source of VOC emissions; obtain a permit before constructing a new, modified, or existing air contamination source at the facility; and report and maintain annual reports of its VOC emissions must reduce harmful toluene emissions through the installation and operation of pollution controls, comply with its permits, and pay a $2,880,000 civil penalty.

88 FR 51352

United States v. Belle Fourche Pipeline Co., No. 22-00089-DLH-CRH and United States v. Bridger Pipeline LLC, No. 22-00043-BLG-SPW (D.N.D. July 31, 2023). Under a proposed partial consent decree, settling CWA defendants must perform injunctive relief and pay a $12,500,000 civil penalty for violations arising from pipeline failures that resulted in discharges of oil into an unnamed tributary to Ash Coulee Creek and the Yellowstone River.

88 FR 50177

United States v. Jackson, Mississippi, City of, No. 3:12-cv-790-HTW-LGI (S.D. Miss. July 26, 2023). A proposed stipulated order under the CWA places the operation of the sewer system of the City of Jackson, Mississippi, under the control of an interim third-party manager and requires the manager to perform substantial work, including addressing more than 200 emergency sewer failure locations, addressing prohibited bypasses of treatment prior to discharging wastewater into the Pearl River, and implementing management, operations, and maintenance programs.