Idaho Conservation League v. U.S. Forest Service
A district court granted in part and denied in part a motion for summary judgment in a challenge to the U.S. Forest Service's approval of a mining company's permit to explore for gold in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest. Environmental groups first argued that the Forest Service violated NEPA by f...
American Waterways Operators v. Wheeler
A district court denied motions to remand and vacate EPA's decision to allow a no-discharge zone in Puget Sound. A tugboat, towboat, and barge industry group argued that EPA erred in determining that adequate pump-out facilities were reasonably available without considering the compliance costs for ...
Center for Biological Diversity v. Ross
A district court vacated exempted fishing permits issued by NMFS that allowed two vessels to engage in commercial longline fishing in federal waters off the coast of California for two years. Environmental groups contended that the permits threatened the survival and recovery of Pacific leatherback ...
Columbia Riverkeeper v. Wheeler
The Ninth Circuit affirmed judgment for environmental groups in a CWA challenge to compel EPA to develop and issue long-overdue temperature TMDLs for the Columbia and Snake Rivers. The groups argued that inaction by Oregon and Washington to issue TMDLs for the two rivers amounted to a "constructive ...
Sauk Prairie Conservation Alliance v. United States Department of the Interior
The Seventh Circuit affirmed summary judgment for NPS in a lawsuit concerning acceptable activities on land acquired by Wisconsin through the Federal Land to Parks Program for recreational use. An environmental group argued that NPS' approval of three activities at the park—dog training, off-road ...
Expertise and Discretion: New Jersey's Approach to Natural Resource Damages
With a Department of Environmental Protection that predates the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, New Jersey has always been at the forefront of combating pollution, becoming only the third state to consolidate all environmental protection and conservation into one cohesive agency on April 22, 1970, and paving the way for environmental protection nationwide with the passage of the New Jersey Spill Compensation and Control Act (Spill Act) in 1976.
Reissuance of an NPDES/SDS Permit to U.S. Steel Corp.
A state appellate court reversed the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's decision to reissue a NPDES permit for an iron ore mine in northeast Minnesota. An environmental group and Indian band challenged the decision, arguing that the agency erred in its interpretation of the CWA and that the permit...