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Use of Institutional Controls as Part of a Superfund Remedy: Lessons From Other Programs

Editors' Summary: Institutional controls are a mechanism for providing a certain degree of safety in the absence of technology that could clean contaminated sites thoroughly. Institutional controls come in a variety of forms, each of which can be designed to meet specific site needs. Flexible but long-lasting mechanisms such as institutional controls can be used to ensure that land uses continue to be compatible with the level of cleanup at a site.

<i>Garamendi</i>'s Unspoken Assumptions: Assessing Executive Foreign Affairs Preemption Challenges to State Regulation of Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Editor's Summary: In 2003, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its most recent pronouncement on the executive foreign affairs preemption doctrine in American Insurance Ass'n v. Garamendi. In this Article, Kimberly Breedon argues that lower courts are prone to overbroad applications of Garamendi because the Court assumed the presence of three elements when it developed the standard for executive foreign affairs preemption of state law: (1) formal source law; (2) nexus to a foreign entity; and (3) indication of intent by the executive to preempt the state law under challenge.

<i>Lingle</i>, Etc.: The U.S. Supreme Court's 2005 Takings Trilogy

Editors' Summary: The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on three takings cases in its 2004 term: Lingle v. Chevron U.S.A., Inc.; Kelo v. City of New London; and San Remo Hotel, Ltd. Partnership v. City & County of San Francisco. In Lingle, the Court struck down the "substantially advance" test set forth in Agins v. City of Tiburon. Kelo, which gained attention from the media and public, upheld the use of eminent domain for economic development purposes. And San Remo involved a relatively straightforward procedural issue.

Costner v. URS Consultants, Inc.

The court affirms in part and reverses in part a district court decision holding that environmental groups could bring False Claims Act (FCA) claims against contractors at a Superfund site in Arkansas. In a qui tam action brought on behalf of the United States, environmental groups allege that the c...

Centerior Serv. Co. v. Acme Scrap Iron & Metal Corp.

The court holds that potentially responsible parties (PRPs) compelled to initiate a hazardous waste site cleanup are precluded from joint and several cost recovery from other PRPs under Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) §107(a), and, thus, are limited to...

Grand Canyon Air Tour Coalition v. Federal Aviation Admin.

The court upholds a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) rule that was promulgated pursuant to the Overflights Act and designed to reduce aircraft noise from sight-seeing tours in the Grand Canyon National Park. The Act required the Secretary of the Interior, via the National Park Service (NPS), to...

Gordon v. Texas

The court holds that the political question doctrine does not bar a federal court from resolving landowners' suits alleging that a state-managed fish pass significantly contributed to beach erosion on their property. The court first holds that the landowners' claims for injunctive relief and damages...

Bouchard Transp. Co. v. Updegraff

The court holds that a district court erred in ruling that Florida is entitled to Eleventh Amendment immunity in a limitation of liability proceeding, but it correctly dismissed the Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA) and Florida Pollution Discharge Prevention Act claims brought against the owners of th...

Automated Salvage Transp., Inc. v. Wheelabrator Envtl. Sys., Inc.

The court holds that a settlement agreement between a state solid waste authority and a private waste disposal company does not violate the Sherman Act or the federal Commerce Clause. The agreement requires both the state authority and the company to respect one another's municipal contracts by reje...

Bayou Liberty Ass'n v. Corps of Eng'rs

The court holds that an environmental group is not entitled to a preliminary injunction suspending a proposed retail development's construction permit and ordering the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) addressing the development's impact on flooding. The...