The court holds that an environmental group with an interest in preserving land subject to a condemnation action under the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore Act may not intervene as of right under Rule 24(a) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) in the condemnation proceeding. The court rule...

The court holds that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by failing to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) prior to issuing a Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) §104 permit for the taking of orca whales. The court first hol...

The court holds that amending a state-held, federally funded conservation easement to allow expansion of a private golf course is a conversion to other than public outdoor recreation uses and so requires federal approval under the Land and Water Conservation Fund Act. The court holds that even thoug...

The court rules that §107 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) contemplates recovery for private cleanup activities undertaken at a hazardous waste disposal site in the absence of any governmental action with respect to the particular site. Refuting ...

The court rules that land that exhibits wetland characteristics only because of unrelated government river maintenance is not within the Corps of Engineers' jurisdiction under Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) §404. The court notes that the area in question, though once a side-channel of ...

The court holds that the Pacific Northwest Power Planning and Conservation Act's (Regional Act's) short deadlines for offering power contracts do not excuse the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) from complying with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) in offering contracts; however, the ...

The court holds that appellants' challenges to the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) alleged violation of nondiscretionary duties to protect them from asbestos wastes on their homesites are moot. Initially, the court rules that the no-visible-emission standard for asbestos set by EPA under �...

The court holds that the Corps of Engineers has jurisdiction to require Rivers and Harbors Act §10 and Federal Water Pollution Control Act §404 permits for construction on lands owned by plaintiffs but inundated by a rise in lake level caused by a Corps dam and subject to a Corps flowage easement....

The court holds that neither appellant's failure to allege that he gave notice to the requisite parties under the citizen suit provisions of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act and the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act nor the fact that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) had issued a...

The court holds that the "vandalism and malicious mischief" clause in a municipal sewer district's insurance policy covers damage to a sewage treatment plant caused by a third party's illegal dumping of toxic chemicals into a sewer. Applying Kentucky law, the court holds that the clause does not req...