The Court of Federal Claims awarded $84 million to four oil companies for costs they incurred cleaning up waste stemming from the production of aviation gasoline during World War II under contracts with the U.S. government. The government argued that the oil companies are not entitled to recover all...

The Eighth Circuit affirmed a lower court order holding that a company substantially complied with a state's remediation plan for cleaning up PCB contamination at a hazardous waste site. The company's predecessor-in-interest operated an electrical transformer repair facility on the subject property,...

A district court denied motions for summary judgment brought by the current or former owners of underground petroleum storage tanks who were sued under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) by the owner of neighboring property. The underground storage tank (UST) owners argued that ground...

The court holds that the failure of the United States to regulate the passage of a ship carrying nuclear waste through waters in the U.S. exclusive economic zone (EEZ) is not a major federal action. Therefore, the court dismisses an environmental group's National Environmental Policy Act claims agai...

The court holds that although a state department of transportation is technically liable under the Washington Model Toxics Control Act (MTCA) for the disposal of a tank car at a Superfund site, the department need not pay remedial action costs to a group of utilities that cleaned up the site. The de...

The court holds that the Bureau of Land Management's (BLM's) denial under the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) Land Withdrawal Act of an application to drill on an oil and gas lease did not constitute a permanent taking of the leaseholder's rights. BLM denied the application until the U.S. Environ...

The court reverses and remands a district court's allocation of insurance coverage costs between an insured and its excess insurers for soil, groundwater, and wetlands contamination at the insured's tank truck terminal. The court first holds that the district court had subject matter jurisdiction ov...

The court holds that under New York law, insurers are not obligated to defend and indernnify a clothing manufacturer from private and government damage claims stemming from contamination at the manufacturer's New York and Virgin Islands facilities. The manufacturer acquired the two facilities from s...

The court reverses a district court order that dismissed a property owner's Comprehensive Environmental Response. Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and Georgia Hazardous Site Response Act contribution claims against a bank for failure to state a claim. The bank served as a trustee of a trust ...

The court holds that a pharmaceutical company that sold unused chemicals to a vitamin manufacturing facility is not a party liable for contribution under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA). The court first finds that the definition of "disposal" contai...