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ARTICLE · 09 JANUARY 2013

Clean Water Act - Discharge Of Pollutants

Mayer Brown
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Today the Supreme Court issued one decision, described below, of interest to the business community.

United StatesLitigation, Mediation & Arbitration
Timothy Bishop
Timothy Bishop
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Keywords: Clean Water Act, National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, NPDES

Today the Supreme Court issued one decision, described below, of interest to the business community.

Los Angeles County Flood Control District v. Natural Resources Defense Council, No. 11-460 (described in the June 26, 2012, Docket Report)

The Clean Water Act regulates "discharge[s]" of pollutants from, among other things, municipal storm-sewer systems. 33 U.S.C. § 1342(p). In 2004, the Supreme Court held that there is no "discharge" within the meaning of the CWA, and hence no possibility of a statutory violation, when water flows between two bodies of water that are not "meaningfully distinct." S. Fla. Water Mgmt. Dist. v. Miccosukee Tribe, 541 U.S. 95, 112 (2004). Today, the Court reaffirmed that holding in Los Angeles County Flood Control District v. Natural Resources Defense Council, No. 11-460.

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