The court upholds the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) decision to grant a conditional "prevention of significant deterioration (PSD) of air quality" permit for two coal-fired power plants issued pursuant to the Clean Air Act. Plaintiffs argued that the power plants will not use the best av...

The court rules that the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) complied with the National Environmental Policy Act in preparing an environmental impact statement (EIS) for a docking facility construction project and that it complied with the "federal consistency" provisions of the C...

The court rules that the federal government may enforce the terms of a national pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit while a state action is pending to enforce the same permit, but the court issues a conditional stay of the federal action due to exceptional circumstances. The Delawa...

The court rules that under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) the United States may seek recovery of oil spill cleanup costs outside of a shipowner's action for exoneration from or limitation of liability under the Limited Liability Act. Because the Limitation Act limits liability for d...

In an action in which the United States seeks to recover the expenses of cleaning up an oil spill under §311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, the court rules that the owner of a dolphin which contributed to the spill may be liable to the government under general maritime law. Although th...

The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals reverses in part and affirms in part a district court ruling that steel production is comprised of three separate and independent processes under state law and emissions from appellee's steel-making facility did not violate applicable emission limitations. However,...

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rules that a suit to enjoin the Secretary of the Interior from implementing a livestock reduction program on reservation lands until an environmental impact statement was filed is moot where Congress subsequently declared that actions taken pursuant to the program ...

The court rules that the purposeful or knowing release of hazardous wastes need not be shown to have caused widespread injury to constitute a crime under state law. Defendants sought to dismiss a criminal indictment alleging a conspiracy to maintain a nuisancedue to the disposal of hazardous wastes....

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rules that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) acted reasonably in determining that petitioners did not commence construction of Unit Two of Nevada's North Valmy coal-fired power plant prior to the effective date of EPA regulations requiring new pollution sou...

The court rules that the Army Corps of Engineers properly issued dredge and fill permits for a boat marina expansion and that the accompanying environmental impact statement (EIS) is adequate. The court rejects plaintiff's allegations that the permits and the EIS are "fatally defective." The court n...