Supreme Court Declines To Hear Clean Water Act Permit 'Shield' Suit

摘要

The Supreme Court has rejected a coal company's petition urging it to reverse an appellate decision that said EPA's nationwide general permit for stormwater does not "shield" facilities from Clean Water Act (CWA) liability for releases of non-stormwater pollutants such as solid coal, a decision industry warns narrows the scope of the shield. In its May 8 orders, the high court without comment says that it declines to hear the appeal of Alaska Community Action on Toxics (ACAT) v. Aurora Energy Services, LLC, et al. In the case, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit unanimously held Aurora liable for releases of solid coal from its Seward, AK, loading facility. Coal firm Aurora Energy Services and its allies were asking the justices to overturn the ruling, which found liability even though Aurora's facility is covered by EPA's multi-sector general permit (MSGP) for stormwater - on the grounds that the MSGP's list of allowed discharges did not include coal.