Clean Water Act
Energy Companies Win Supreme Court's Clean Water Act Ruling
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 1 April 2009 - 6:40pmWASHINGTON – The Supreme Court has given power plant operators in California and around the nation an important victory by upholding the Environmental Protection Agency’s power to use cost-benefit analyses in deciding whether to require expensive retrofitting to minimize fish-kills.
Environmental groups, however, say they hope the Obama administration EPA will shift policy and take a stricter view of what existing power plants must do to reduce the impact on aquatic life from using ocean or river waters to cool the facilities.
Power Plant Opponents Kicked Out Of 'Inappropriate Forum'
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 30 January 2009 - 11:17amA challenge to a large power plant in western Riverside County has been rejected by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which ruled that the plaintiffs could not contest the project in federal district court.
U.S. Supreme Court Reviews Coastal Power Plant Operations
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 8 December 2008 - 11:05amWASHINGTON – Industry and environmental groups in California are awaiting a ruling from the U.S. Supreme Court that could determine how far the state’s coastal power plants must go to reduce their fish-killing intake of ocean waters used to cool generating facilities.
EPA Ordered To Write Rules For Construction Site Runoff
Submitted by Robin Andersen on 1 October 2008 - 2:55pmThe Environmental Protection Agency has until December 1, 2009, to promulgate standards for runoff from construction sites. The deadline is contained in a 2006 federal district court ruling that the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals recently upheld.
Big Bear Lake Developer Wins Huge Reversal
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 19 August 2008 - 10:28amA federal judge’s ruling blocking development of a controversial condominium project on the shore of Big Bear Lake has been thrown out by the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The Ninth Circuit ruled that the district court had no jurisdiction to consider alleged Clean Water Act violations because environmental groups’ notices to the developer regarding potential violations of the act were inadequate and federal agencies were already forcing corrective action. The Ninth Circuit further rejected alleged violations of the Endangered Species Act as both bogus and moot.
State Supreme Court Accepts Clean Water Act Case
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 31 March 2008 - 10:13amThe state Supreme Court has accepted for review a Clean Water Act case involving a power plant along the Monterey County coast.
State, Environmentalists Both Lose Appeals Of Power Plant Decision
Submitted by Paul Shigley on 28 February 2008 - 12:35pmIn an extremely long and complex opinion, the Sixth District Court of Appeal has upheld water discharge permits for Duke Energy’s Moss Landing power plant.
Builders, Administration Differ With Environmentalists On Species Review
Submitted by Bill Fulton on 4 May 2007 - 11:32amWASHINGTON _ Home builders are hoping that the U.S. Supreme Court will overturn a Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision that could broaden the impact of the federal Endangered Species Act on residential and commercial construction.
