U.S.Supreme Court Issues Opinion in Maui County v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund

摘要

The U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion in Maui County v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund on April 23, ruling in favor of the fund in a 6-3 decision. The case examined whether the U.S. Clean Water Act requires a National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit when pollutants are conveyed from a point source to navigable waters by a nonpoint source. In this case, that nonpoint source was groundwater. With the ruling, the high court said the Clean Water Act not only forbids direct discharges of pollutants but the "functional equivalent" as well.