High Court Leaves EPA, Courts To Decide On CWA Groundwater Permits

April 23, 2020
The Supreme Court’s ruling creating a new “functional equivalent” test for determining, on a case-by-case basis, when pollutants traveling through groundwater may need a Clean Water Act (CWA) discharge permit gives dischargers little certainty on when to seek permits, leaving EPA and courts to resolve how to apply the test. “My expectation is that this decision does very little to provide clarity for regulated entities, regulators, or environmental groups moving forward,” Joel Johnston, an attorney with Hall Estill, said in...


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