Do the Clean Water Act and its implementing regulations require permits before stormwater runoff from logging roads can be discharged into the navigable waters of the United States? No, said the Supreme Court in its March 20th decision, reversing the Ninth Circuit’s decision in Northwest Environmental Defense Center v. Brown. The high court reaffirmed that a federal Clean Water Act NPDES point source discharge permit is not required under EPA regulations for channelized stormwater discharges to streams or other waters from logging roads. Decker v. Northwest Environmental Defense Center (No. 11-338, March 20, 2013).
A discussion of the case and its implications is available here.
Read our previous reports regarding this case:
EPA Announces Intent to Propose Revised Logging Road Storm Water Regulations
U.S. Loggers Lose an Important EPA Exemption — NEDC v. Brown