The court holds that the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) does not preempt a California city's comprehensive municipal environmental response and liability ordinance. An insurer challenged the constitutionality of the ordinance. The court first dismisses...

The court grants summary judgment to a company that allegedly violated its Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) §404 permit by filling wetlands in contradiction of its mitigation plan. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers authorized the company's filling and mitigation plan under Nationwide Perm...

The court holds that the federal governments' denial of a developer's application for a Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) §404 permit to dredge and fill certain underwater lakebottom property did not constitute a regulatory taking. The developer claimed that the denial resulted in a takin...

The court holds that environmental groups may seek civil penalties based on allegations of a shipyard's continuing Federal Water Pollution Control Act violations that contribute to specific injuries. The court first holds that Steel Co. v. Citizens for a Better Environment, 118 S. Ct. 1003, 28 ELR 2...

The court holds that environmental groups lacked standing to pursue Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) claims against a smelting facility that allegedly violated its national pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit. The groups alleged that the facility violated the FWPCA by ex...

The court holds that the Federal Highway Administration's (FHwA's) and a state transportation agency's decision not to complete a supplemental environmental impact statement (EIS) for a highway project in New Jersey was reasonable. Several years after a final EIS for the highway was completed, it wa...

The court holds that a district court erred in failing to abstain under Younger v. Harris, 401 U.S. 37 (1971), in a case challenging the constitutionality of an Oregon county's solid waste ordinance. A company charged with violating the ordinance sought declaratory and injunctive relief against enfo...

The court holds that an environmental group's Department of Transportation Act §4(f) challenge to a proposed five-mile highway corridor in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is time barred. Although a statement made in the district court's opinion is a "new circumstance," it does not have anything to do with ...

The court holds that the Hazardous Materials Transportation Act (HMTA) preempts a New York regulation that prohibits the repackaging of hazardous wastes. The court first holds that the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) has primary jurisdiction over the regulation and transportation of hazardou...

The court holds that the U.S. Department of the Navy's decision to transfer a large fleet of aircraft to a Virginia naval air station located near environmental group members' homes did not violate the National Environmental Policy Act. The court first holds that the Navy's consideration of the Virg...