A district court dismissed a property owner's RCRA claim against an oil company for benzene contamination present in the basement of one of his buildings. The evidence fails to establish that there may be an imminent and substantial danger to human health or the environment. The owner does not u...

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A district court dismissed a property owner's contribution action against a railroad company for failure to state a claim. The property owner failed to allege any facts that explain why the company is liable for a portion of the site cleanup. It failed to explain how the company came to be invol...

The Second Circuit held that a lower court should have granted a chemical manufacturer's request for declaratory judgment against adjoining property owners under CERCLA for future costs it will incur cleaning up industrial pollution. The manufacturer sued the two adjoining property owners for c...

A district court held that Washington state must establish reasonably available control technology (RACT) for greenhouse gas emissions. Based on its plain language, the RACT provision contained in Washington's federally approved SIP is not discretionary and requires the state's agencies to estab...

A California court held that the California Air Resources Board's "functional equivalent document" and scoping plan to reduce greenhouse gases as it relates to cap and trade complies with the California Environmental Quality Act. The court therefore lifted its May 20, 2011, peremptory writ of man...

A district court held that the state of Washington is not liable as an arranger under CERCLA for hazardous waste contamination stemming from mining operations on state lands. The state entered into mining contracts with a Canadian mining company that allowed the company to excavate and remove metal-...