2023’s Second Quarter Filled with Environmental Law Updates

That’s a wrap on Quarter 2 of 2023, and it was an eventful one for environmental law news. Updates included proposed rules to address both the disposal of CCR from legacy CCR surface impoundments and GHG standards and guidelines for fossil fuel-fired power plants, the new Sackett II decision on WOTUS, SSM Rulemaking in Illinois, and new legislation passed by the Illinois 103rd General […]

WOTUS and PM NAAQS and PFAS, Oh My! Environmental Highlights in First Quarter 2023

Instead of the Land of Oz, we are in the land of acronyms. WOTUS, PM, NAAQS, PFAS —and more—are common acronyms used in environmental law. And during the first quarter of 2023, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) adopted, revised, reconsidered, or proposed changes to the statutes, regulations, or standards connected to each of […]

County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund: What Happens Now?

Cases decided by federal courts in Illinois and the Seventh Circuit have held that groundwater does not implicate the CWA, even if there exists a hydrological connection between groundwater and navigable waters.  In Vill. of Oconomowoc Lake v. Dayton Hudson Corp., 24 F.3d 962, 965 (7th Cir. 1994), the Seventh Circuit opined that “we are confident that […]

Supreme Court: Groundwater Discharges to Navigable Waters Require a Permit When ‘Functionally Equivalent’ to a Direct Discharge

Summary of County of Maui, Hawaii v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund, et al. No. 18-260, Argued 1/6/2019, Decided 4/23/2020) Petitioner, County of Maui (“Maui”), operates a wastewater reclamation facility that partially treats water from the surrounding area, then releases roughly 4 million gallons of treated water into the ground through four wells. The effluent travels through ground […]

New USEPA Clean Water Act Guidance on Groundwater Previews Supreme Court Position and Applies in Illinois, Missouri, and 34 Other States

The Fourth Circuit in Kinder Morgan and the Ninth Circuit in County of Maui both ruled that discharges to groundwater that reach surface water are subject to regulation by USEPA under the Clean Water Act. Kinder Morgan, 887 F.3d at 651 (“a plaintiff must allege a direct hydrological connection between ground water and navigable waters in order to state a claim […]