The court rules that the Noise Control Act (NCA) does not facially preempt Delaware's noise control statute and regulations. Delaware had threatened to enjoin alleged violations of its regulations by refrigerated shipping units at plaintiffs' railyard. The federal Environmental Protection Agency (EP...

The court holds that the Forest Service must provide administrative appeals for National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) claims regarding its sale of timber in the Willamette National Forest, Oregon, and while the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) citizen suit provision does not provide a ...

The court upholds the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) rule under §4 of the Toxic Substances Control Act requiring manufacturers to test fluoroalkelenes for their potential adverse health effects. The decision to promulgate the testing rule was supported by substantial evidence, since EPA ...

The court holds that the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) procedures for issuing Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) permits are the functional equivalent of an environmental impact statement (EIS). The court first holds that it has subject matter jurisdiction to consider the need...

The court invalidates a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) regulation exempting mines on public lands in Alaska of less than five acres from environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA). In 1980, BLM promulgated...

The court holds that the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) vertical and horizontal spread (VHS) model, used to predict the probable contamination levels of hazardous substances under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, constitutes a rule requiring public notice and comment under the ...

The court holds that the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA's) 1985 notice of proposed rulemaking in which the FDA proposed to continue to allow the use of methylene chloride, a carcinogen, for the decaffeination of coffee is not a final action subject to judicial review. In its notice, the FDA pro...

The court upholds requirements in the national contingency plan (NCP) that private claims for reimbursement of response costs under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) must be preauthorized by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and can only be ma...

In a 5-3 decision, the Court rules that state ownership of lands subject to the public trust doctrine includes nonnavigable tidal lands. Petitioners brought a quiet title action to prevent Mississippi from issuing oil and gas leases for lands several miles north of Mississippi's Gulf Coast. Although...

The court holds that the Secretary of the Army had authority under the Gateway National Recreation Act to transfer to the Navy, rather than to the Department of the Interior (Interior), certain land located within the boundaries of the Gateway National Recreation Area in and around New York Harbor. ...