The court holds that a city violated the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) by discharging sludge from its wastewater treatment facility without an operating permit. The court first holds that a state constitutional provision cannot excuse the city's operation of its water treatment facilit...

The court upholds the U.S. Forest Service's denial of a special use permit to land a private helicopter on a parcel of the Sawtooth National Forest that abuts the permit applicant's vacation property in rural Idaho. The court first holds that the Forest Service reasonably interpreted 36 C.F.R. §251...

The court affirms a district court decision enjoining further construction on a Kansas highway project until the Federal Highway Administration (FHwA) completes a National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) supplemental environmental impact statement (SEIS) for a segment of the project. The court first...

The court affirms a district court's grant of summary judgment on several state-law tort claims in favor of pesticide companies whose products allegedly caused a newborn's multiple birth defects. The district court granted summary judgment because the evidence showed that the product at issue had no...

The court holds that the passage of the Oil Pollution Act (OPA), which requires single-hulled oil tankers to be retrofitted with double hulls or be phased out of service, did not effect a taking of shipping companies' oil tankers. The court first holds that when the companies built or acquired the v...

The court vacates a district court's dismissal of a community association's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Intermodal Surface Transportation and Efficiency Act (ISTEA) claims against the federal government in connection with a highway project in Tennessee. The court first holds that th...

The court reinstates a neighborhood association's National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Federal Aid Highway Act (FAHA) claims against federal and state agencies for failing to prepare a supplemental environmental impact statement (SEIS) addressing the construction of a bypass around Salisbury...

The court holds that the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) does not preempt a California city's comprehensive municipal environmental response and liability ordinance. An insurer challenged the constitutionality of the ordinance. The court first dismisses...

The court holds that the Federal Highway Administration's (FHwA's) and a state transportation agency's decision not to complete a supplemental environmental impact statement (EIS) for a highway project in New Jersey was reasonable. Several years after a final EIS for the highway was completed, it wa...

The court holds that the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act (HMTA) preempts a New York regulation that prohibits the repackaging of hazardous wastes. The court first holds that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has primary jurisdiction over the regulation and transportation of hazardou...