A district court granted DOI's motion to dismiss a lawsuit concerning tribal water rights on the Crow Reservation in Montana. Tribal members who hold property on the reservation challenged the 2010 Crow Tribe Water Rights Settlement Act (Settlement Act), which provided benefits to the tribe in excha...
The Fifth Circuit reversed a district court ruling upholding the Army Corps of Engineers' decision to issue a CWA §404 permit to fill wetlands for a commercial and residential development project in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana. Parish residents and environmental groups argued the Corps' decision ...
A district court granted in part and denied in part summary judgment for environmental groups in a CWA/SMCRA citizen suit concerning the discharge of pollutants from surface coal mines in West Virginia. The groups argued a coal mining company violated the CWA by discharging mining pollutants at Rush...
A district court denied in part and dismissed in part two nonprofit groups' challenge to DOE's approval of a freshwater offshore wind project in Lake Erie. The groups argued DOE violated NEPA by failing to prepare an EIS and failing to take a "hard look" at reasonable alternatives and cumulative imp...
The Ninth Circuit affirmed denial of fishing rights to the Lummi Nation in a long-running dispute over rights in certain waters in northern Washington. The Swinomish Indian Tribal Community, the Tulalip Tribes, and the Upper Skagit Indian Tribe argued that the recognized fishing rights of the Lummi ...
The Fifth Circuit denied environmental groups' petition to review the Army Corps of Engineers' issuance of a CWA permit for a proposed liquefied natural gas production and export terminal on the Calcasieu River in Louisiana. The groups argued the Corps failed to adequately consider a particular alte...
A district court granted in part summary judgment for an environmental group in a challenge to EPA's issuance of recommended water quality criteria for cadmium in 2016. The group argued EPA violated the ESA by failing to consult with expert agencies before issuing the recommended criteria. The Agenc...
The D.C. Circuit dismissed five states' petition to review EPA's extension of a compliance deadline for a revised national drinking water regulation, which in turn extended the deadline for states to enforce conforming regulations to their own. The states argued the extension would cause their resid...
The Minnesota Supreme Court affirmed in part and reversed in part an appellate court ruling in a challenge to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency's (MPCA's) decision to issue an NPDES permit for a proposed mine and processing plant to extract copper, nickel, and precious metals in northeastern Mi...
The Ninth Circuit, 2-1, denied the city of San Francisco's challenge to an EPA order denying review of the city's NPDES permit for a combined sewer system and wastewater treatment facility. The city argued EPA violated the CWA by including in the permit two general narrative prohibitions on discharg...