Dangerous Waters? The Future of Irreparable Harm Under NEPA After <i>Winter v. NRDC</i>
Editors' Summary
To the Ends of the Earth: Where Does Navigable Water Begin Under <i>SWANCC</i>?
I. Introduction and Overview
The Float a Boat Test: How to Use It to Advantage in This Post-<i>Rapanos</i> World
Editors' Summary: Since the Supreme Court's decision in Rapanos v. United States, courts, practitioners, and scholars have continued to discuss Justice Anthony M. Kennedy's significant nexus test. Under this test, to protect a wetland one must establish that there is a significant nexus between the wetland and a traditional navigable water. In this Article, authors William W. Sapp, Rebekah Robinson, and M. Allison Burdette suggest that the nearer a traditional navigable water is to the wetland, the better the chance of establishing that there is a significant nexus between the two.
Mobil Oil Exploration, Environmental Protection, and Contract Repudiation: It's Time to Recognize the Public Trust in the Outer Continental Shelf
In a recent article reviewing the U.S. Supreme Court's environmental decisions over the last 30 years (1969-1999), Professor Richard Lazarus argues that "the Justices have never fully appreciated environmental law as a distinct area of law."1
Sovereign Immunity and the National Nuclear Security Administration: A King That Can Do No Wrong?
The 1999 National Nuclear Security Administration Act (NNSA Act) threatens to reverse 20 years of reforms and court decisions intended to bring the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) into compliance with environmental laws and regulations. The NNSA Act, enacted in the wake of allegations of spying at Los Alamos nuclear weapons laboratory in New Mexico, established a semi-autonomous agency within DOE—the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). The NNSA operates nine laboratories and facilities within the U.S. nuclear weapons complex.
"Green Collar Criminals" and Wetlands Uncertainty: The Effect of Criminal Provisions in Public Welfare Statutes on Wetlands
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.
Recent Developments in Federal Wetlands Law: Part II
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.
Encouraging Self-Auditing Within the Pork Industry: The Nationwide Clean Water Act Enforcement Agreement for Agriculture's First Industry-Wide Environmental Auditing Program
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.