The Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), the Clean Water Act (CWA), and the Clean Air Act (CAA) represent federal regulatory regimes for protecting the environment. Although each statute initially places administrative responsibility in the hands of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), each encourages states, to varying degrees, to take primary responsibility for implementing the statutory regime.

In Environmental Federalism Part 1: The History of Overfiling Under RCRA, the CWA, and the CAA Prior to Harmon, Smithfield, and CLEAN, the history of judicial and administrative decisions relating to overfiling under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), the Clean Water Act (CWA), and the Clean Air Act (CAA) was analyzed. The history showed that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), with limited exceptions, generally was understood to have overfiling authority under RCRA, the CWA, and the CAA. The limited exceptions focused on two situations.

Under the public welfare doctrine, certain regulatory crimes require no showing of the traditional mens rea, or "guilty mind," as a predicate to criminal liability. The doctrine has been used to relax intent requirements in criminal statutes when the public welfare is at stake and is predicated upon the fact that the defendant had notice that the dangerous activity is regulated. A majority of courts place the criminal provisions of the Clean Water Act (CWA) within the public welfare doctrine.

Editors' Summary: This Article is the second in a series intended to supplement Federal Wetlands Law, a primer that ELR published in 1993 and subsequently incorporated into the Wetlands Deskbook. The Article, which refers to the primer but stands on its own, focuses primarily on where wetlands law has changed since the primer's publication. The Article first discusses nationwide and general permits under Clean Water Act §404, including a new nationwide permit that applies to single-family homesites.

Editors' Summary: Late last year, EPA and the National Pork Producers Council (NPPC) announced that they had developed a compliance assurance program (CAP) under which U.S. pork producers can reduce their penalties for FWPCA violations that they report and correct as part of a comprehensive environmental auditing program. This Dialogue examines the CAP and the terms of the agreement that pork producers may sign to register for the CAP. The Dialogue begins by describing the context in which the CAP was developed.

In May 2000, the unthinkable happened; individuals living in Canada became ill, some fatally, from drinking tap water contaminated with a toxic strain of Escherichia coli (e-coli). Walkerton, a small rural town in Ontario, Canada, was thrust into the spotlight as Canadians tried to understand how this could have happened. A public inquiry was struck to investigate the causes of the tragedy and make recommendations to ensure that it would not happen again. As a result, governments across Canada are taking a close look at how drinking water supplies are protected and managed.

Editors' Summary: Pfiesteria piscicida, a sometimes toxic microorganism, is responsible for the death of millions of fish in Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina, and Virginia. Although the problem of Pfiesteria-related fish kills is associated with the Mid-Atlantic region, other toxic microorganisms have threatened fish and marine wildlife throughout the world. Scientists attribute this "global epidemic" of toxic microbes to excessive nutrient loading from nonpoint sources of pollution.

Water scarcity is no longer a threat, it is a reality. Increasing populations throughout the country and the world are putting increased pressure on existing supplies of freshwater. Cities, states, and regions are scrambling to find solutions to this burgeoning problem. The impact of drought, which has been felt not only in the typically dry Southwest, but also in the humid Southeast this past summer, compounds the problem. So, what mechanisms evolve to help alleviate the problem?

Buried deep within the several thousand page Omnibus Consolidated Appropriations Act signed by President Clinton in the waning days of the 104th Congress are the first significant amendments in a decade to the much-debated Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA or Superfund). CERCLA is the federal law that creates a broad class of parties potentially liable for expenses incurred in cleaning up sites contaminated with hazardous substances.

Editors' Summary: This Article is the last in a three-part series intended to supplement Federal Wetlands Law, a primer that ELR published in 1993 and subsequently incorporated into the Wetlands Deskbook. The Article, which refers to the primer but stands on its own, focuses primarily on where wetlands law has changed since the primer's publication. The Article first addresses judicial review of agency wetlands decisions, including a proposed administrative appeal process for U.S.