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Hawaii Wildlife Fund v. Maui, City of

The Ninth Circuit held that Maui County is liable for illegally discharging treated wastewater that seeped through groundwater into the Pacific Ocean. The County owns and operates four wells at the Lahaina Wastewater Reclamation Facility (“LWRF”), the principal municipal wastewater treatment pla...

Coppola v. Smith

A district court held that a California city does not have to pay a settlement to a dry cleaner for chemical contamination near his property per a condition of their settlement agreement. After discovering a perchloroethylene (PCE) contamination plume in downtown Visalia, California, the California ...

Connecticut v. Pruitt

A district court held that EPA failed to act when it did not rule within 60 days on Connecticut's petition concerning upwind pollution. In June 2016, Connecticut filed a petition pursuant to §126(b) of the CAA for EPA to make a finding that Brunner Island is emitting air pollutants that significant...

Utah Shared Access Alliance v. U.S. Forest Serv.

The court holds that the U.S. Forest Service's decision to close numerous roads in a popular recreation area in the Dixie National Forest in an effort to reduce sedimentation in lakes complied with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The Forest Service issued an environmental assessment an...

FMC Corp. v. Vendo Co.

The court bars certain Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and state-law contribution claims that two settling potentially responsible parties (PRPs) at a California contaminated site brought against a nonsettling PRP, but allows certain other contribution ...

Fisher v. Chestnut Mountain Resort, Inc.

The court holds that a group of individuals do not have standing to bring a Clean Water Act citizen suit against a ski resort for discharging pollutants without a permit. In 1997, the resort constructed and put into use a terrain park, primarily for snowboarders, on the far side of its property, whi...

Fireman's Fund Ins. Co. v. Lodi, Cal., City of

The court holds that the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and California state law do not preempt the field of hazardous waste remediation either explicitly or by implication, but that certain sections of a municipality's hazardous waste law are neverthe...

Exxon Valdez

The court holds that commercial and native subsistence fishermen may be awarded punitive damages for economic injuries they suffered as a result of the Exxon Valdez oil spill, but the $5 billion awarded the fishermen is excessive in light of U.S. Supreme Court precedent. A class of commercial fisher...

North Carolina Shellfish Growers Ass'n v. Holly Ridge Assocs., L.L.C.

A court denies a landowner's motion to dismiss environmental groups' Clean Water Act (CWA) citizen suit against the landowner for ditch digging in wetlands and discharging to surrounding waters without the proper permits. The court first holds that the CWA §505(a) citizen suit provision is constitu...

Water Keeper Alliance v. Smithfield Foods, Inc.

A court denies a concentrated animal feeding operation's (CAFO's) motion to dismiss an environmental group's claims that the CAFO violated various provisions of the Clean Water Act (CWA) and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The CAFO failed to obtain a national pollutant discharge e...