The court, lifting the permanent injunction that has halted construction of the Wallisville Lake Project in Texas since 1973, holds that the Corps of Engineers has complied with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and Congress has authorized the project. The court first holds that the Corps...

The court holds that water on federal lands in excess of that necessary for the purposes of the original land reservation is free for appropriation, but the United States may assert a defeasible riparian water right to unused and unappropriated water under which it may use the water for secondary no...

The court holds that a trustee in bankruptcy of a hazardous waste site may not abandon the site with less than full compliance with the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) and that the costs incurred by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under CERCLA...

The court holds that environmental groups are entitled to attorney fees in a settled Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) citizen suit, but adjusts the lodestar downward since plaintiffs' proof is entirely based on reports filed by defendant pursuant to law and plaintiffs met with only minima...

The court holds that the Wyoming Environmental Quality Council's denial of an application to remove large blocks of rock from public lands in southern Wyoming was supported by substantial evidence and is not preempted by federal law. The court first holds that college professors were competent to fi...

The court holds that the progressive contamination of surface water and groundwater from a hazardous waste disposal site constitutes an occurrence under the insured's comprehensive general liability insurance policies. The court, applying the actual injury rule to determine whether property damage o...

The court holds that neither listing a hazardous waste disposal site on the National Priorities List (NPL) nor government approval of the cleanup plan is a prerequisite to a private action to recover response costs under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERC...

The court holds that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC's) decision pursuant to the Federal Power Act to issue five preliminary permits for hydroelectric projects in the Snohomish River Basin without preparing a comprehensive plan for the area is unsupported by the record. The court ho...

The court awards the United States and South Carolina the costs for their removal action at the Bluff Road site under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act. The court holds that defendants are liable to the United States for cleanup costs and administrative, inves...

The court dismisses with prejudice the claims for surface cleanup response costs at the Bluff Road site against a defendant in a cost recovery action under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act upon settlement of the claims for $15,000.
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