RULING SPARKS CIRCUIT SPLIT OVER EPA WATER ACT WAIVER FOR TRANSFERS

摘要

A federal appellate court has upheld a controversial Bush-era EPA rule exempting water transfers from Clean Water Act (CWA) permit requirements, creating an apparent split among appellate courts that environmentalists say may have to be resolved by the Supreme Court.rnThe U.S. Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit ruled June 4 in Friends of the Everglades, et al. v. South Florida Water Management District, et al. that EPA made a "reasonable" decision to exempt water transfers from permit requirements and should be accorded deference. The ruling, which overturned a lower court ruling, focused on whether water transfers into the Everglades' Lake Okeechobee must receive National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits.