Appellate Court Rejects Industry Argument On CWA Certifications Timing

摘要

A key appellate court has rejected a power company suit that argued the one-year time limit in the Clean Water Act (CWA) for states to issue so-called certifications of federal water quality actions means that any additional conditions contained in the certifications must be effective within the same 12 months. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled May 3 to reject Alcoa Power Generating Inc.'s claim that that the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) misinterpreted the Clean Water Act (CWA) when it accepted a CWA section 401 certification from North Carolina that included provisions that delayed the effective date of the certification beyond the one-year limit. The ruling is available on InsideEPA.com. Seepage 2 for details.