On Aug. 3, 2020, a split Fifth Circuit plunged federal aquaculture regulation into murky waters. The United States is a minor aquaculture producer, ranked 17th in 2017 on a global
Continue Reading The National Marine Fisheries Service is Angling to Regulate Aquaculture; the Fifth Circuit Won’t Bite
Court Cases
Navigability: It’s Not Just for the Federal Clean Water Act Anymore
A curious appellate court decision has Pennsylvania environmental law practitioners scratching their heads about the status of certain waterways.
No, we do not reference the U.S. Supreme Court’s latest Clean…
Continue Reading Navigability: It’s Not Just for the Federal Clean Water Act Anymore
7th Circuit Lowers Removal Hurdle for Defendants That Assisted the Feds
On June 18, 2020, the Seventh Circuit handed down a decision in a case involving historical environmental contamination that eases the path to federal court for defendants who are haled into state court for acts that occurred while defendants were assisting the federal government. In Sherrie Baker et al. v. Atlantic Richfield Company, E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company, et al., No. 19-3160, 2020 WL 3287024, — F.3d — (7th Cir. 2020), the court adopted a new standard for federal officer removal, holding that defendants act under color of federal office and are entitled to a federal forum when sued for conduct relating to acts for the federal government, even if the conduct at issue in a particular case only partially implicates the federally directed acts. This decision has consequences that reach beyond defendants facing environmental liability, as did the defendants in Baker, as it could provide an additional avenue to a federal forum for companies that have either been awarded federal contracts, or that supply customers who hold federal contracts.…
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Can a Settlement with the Regulator Protect You from Your Neighbors in Massachusetts?
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (the court of last resort in the Commonwealth) issued a decision in a land use case today of potential concern for environmental practitioners. It raises…
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Commonwealth Court’s Invalidation of Pennsylvania PUC Defined Terms – Potential Net Metering Implications
On May 12, 2020, a three-judge panel of the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania held that certain net metering regulations of the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) are unenforceable. The regulations…
Continue Reading Commonwealth Court’s Invalidation of Pennsylvania PUC Defined Terms – Potential Net Metering Implications
New York State Court Greenlights New Islanders Arena Project
A New York State Supreme Court Justice in Nassau County dismissed two separate challenges to the state government approvals of a new arena for the NHL’s New York Islanders hockey …
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Federal Judge in Montana Narrows Vacatur of Nationwide Permit 12
On April 17, we posted about the federal district court for Montana vacating the Nationwide Permit (NWP) 12 and enjoining the Army Corps of Engineers’ authorization for the use of…
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Supreme Court: Pollutants Reaching Navigable Waters Through Groundwater May Require Permit Under Clean Water Act
Rejecting the Trump administration’s novel 2019 interpretation that the Clean Water Act never requires permits for pollutant discharges to groundwater, the United States Supreme Court handed down, on April 23,…
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The Supreme Court Allows State Law Claims for More Cleanup on Superfund Sites . . . Sometimes
On April 20, the United States Supreme Court decided that Montana homeowners within a Superfund site could seek to recover the costs of restoration of their land to its uncontaminated…
Continue Reading The Supreme Court Allows State Law Claims for More Cleanup on Superfund Sites . . . Sometimes
Federal Judge Prohibits Use of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Nationwide Permit 12 for Utility and Pipeline Projects
In an April 15 ruling in Northern Plains Resource Council, et al. v. Army Corps of Engineers, Judge Brian Morris of the U.S. District Court for the District of…
Continue Reading Federal Judge Prohibits Use of U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Nationwide Permit 12 for Utility and Pipeline Projects