A district court held that a manufacturer is liable under Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability (CERCLA) and the New Jersey Spill Compensation and Control Act for contribution costs incurred by settling potentially responsible parties at a Superfund site in Mantua, New Je...

The Seventh Circuit upheld a lower court order enjoining a power company from building a coal-fired power plant without first obtaining a new prevention of significant deterioration (PSD) permit from the state of Illinois. The state's environmental agency granted the company a PSD permit in 2001. Th...

The U.S. Supreme Court vacated two provisions of a preliminary injunction that restricted the U.S. Navy's use of mid-frequency active (MFA) sonar during training exercises in the waters off southern California. While the Court does not question the importance of plaintiffs' ecological, scientific, a...

A district court denied a company's motion to dismiss Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) claims filed against it in connection with its disposal of PCB-containing paper sludge on a nearby farm in the 1960s. The current owner of the farm property now seeks ...

The Seventh Circuit affirmed a lower court decision dismissing a property owner's Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) lawsuit against the prior owner for the removal and disposal of an old heating system ins...

A district court held that it has the authority to order a company that violated the Clean Air Act's (CAA's) new source review requirements to take appropriate actions that remedy, mitigate, and offset harms to the public and the environment caused by those violations. CAA §113(b) invokes the c...

The Sixth Circuit affirmed a lower court decision that a natural gas company may clear a 50-foot right-of-way around each of its natural gas pipelines running through landowners' property. The company was granted a right-of-way in 1947, though the agreement did not specify the width of the easement....

The Ninth Circuit affirmed in part and reversed in part a lower court decision holding that conservation groups lack standing to challenge the U.S. government's decision to enter into, and to remain a party to, the Pacific Salmon Treaty of 1999, an effort by Canada and the United States to manage sa...

The Florida Supreme Court held that on its face, the state Beach and Shore Preservation Act does not unconstitutionally deprive upland owners of littoral rights without just compensation. The Act effectuates the state's constitutional duty to protect Florida's beaches, and it achieves a reasonable b...

A district court denied a company's motion for partial summary judgment that it is not liable for response costs incurred at a former metal smelting facility. The facility sought response costs from the company under §107(a) of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liabili...