|
 Welcome to Argentco.com - your authoritative source for environmental, land use and water law, regulation and policy. Our publications are written and analyzed by top practitioners in their fields, and are designed to provide thorough and timely information that is distilled for quick understanding.Use this site to identify key actions in your area of practice or interest. You can search or browse the Argentco.com Archives by Court, Location or Subject. Paid subscribers have access to full-text articles from the Argentco.com Archive. And both visitors and paid subscribers can register for our free E-mail Alert service which can be customized to cover specific subjects of interest. Our Directory will help you locate attorneys, consultants, associations and governmental agencies dealing with your area of concern.
|
The Latest from Argentco.com
February 2010
Colorado River 'Quantification Settlement Agreement' Invalidated as Unconstitutional
After six years in the courts, the long-awaited Sacramento Superior Court ruling on the largest agriculture-to-urban water transfer in California's history was issued in final form on January 13, 2010. The 48-page opinion invalidated 12 of the 13 Quantification Settlement Agreement (QSA) contracts that provided for the transfer of up to 300,000 acre-feet of water each year from Imperial Irrigation District to urban southern California; the court declined to validate the remaining contract....
February 2010
Dual Representation and Due Process: Maintaining the Line Between Advocate and Advisor in Land Use Proceedings
The situation is not uncommon: Most administrative agencies serve both decision-making and adjudicatory functions. A staff attorney may be assigned to act as a prosecutor before an administrative board, or as an advisor to that same board. Sometimes the same attorney may serve as a prosecutor in one matter and an advisor to the board in the next. Other times, the attorney may act as prosecutor and advisor in the same proceeding....
February 2010
Copenhagen Climate Change Conference Leaves Much Debate over Its Ultimate Accomplishments
On December 18, the 15th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP15) concluded an historic summit of 192 nations in Copenhagen, Denmark. While a non-binding agreement--the Copenhagen Accord--was announced, much debate remains over the ultimate accomplishments of the conference....
February 2010
Center for Biological Diversity Petitions EPA to Regulate Chemicals that Pose Widespread Risks to Human and Animal Reproduction
On January 11, 2010, the Center For Biological Diversity (CBD) submitted a Petition for Water Quality Criteria for Endocrine Disrupting Chemicals under the Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. 1314 et seq....
February 2010
Recent Investigations, Settlements, Penalties and Sanctions
Editor's Notice: Complaints and indictments discussed below are merely allegations unless they are proven in a court of law of competent jurisdiction. All accused are presumed innocent until convicted or judged liable. Most settlements are subject to a 30-day public comment period....
February 2010
Fourth Circuit Rejects Maryland's Sovereign Immunity Claim for Liquefied Natural Gas Project Involving the Clean Water Act and Discharges into Navigable Waters
AES Sparrows Point LNG, LLP, and Mid-Atlantic Express Holdings, LLC (collectively: AES) petitioned the court to review the Maryland Department of the Environment's (MDE) denial of a water quality certification required under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act (CWA), for a liquefied natural gas marine import terminal and pipeline project. AES applied to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (Corps) for a permit under Section 404 of the CWA and the Rivers & Harbors Act, to discharge fill material and other pollutants into the navigable waters to construct the project. AES also applied to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for authorization to construct the project, and to operate the terminal and pipeline....
February 2010
Second District Court Upholds Environmental Impact Report, Paving the Way for a Water Transfer
The Second District Court of Appeal has upheld an environmental impact report (EIR), opening the door for a water transfer in Planning and Conservation League v. Castaic Lake Water Agency. Plaintiff Planning and Conservation League (PCL) had challenged an EIR certified by Castaic Water Agency (Castaic) pursuant to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), asserting Castaic was not the appropriate lead agency to review the transfer, and that the EIR was misleading....
February 2010
Obama Administration Releases Interim Federal Action Plan to Address Delta Crisis
On December 22, 2009, six federal agencies, including the Departments of Interior, Commerce, Agriculture, and the Army, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Council on Environmental Quality, issued an "Interim Federal Action Plan" (Interim Plan) for California's San Francisco Bay/ Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta" (Bay-Delta or Delta)....
February 2010
San Francisco Bay Mussels to be Utilized in NOAA Study for 'Emerging Contaminants'
On December 28, 2009, scientists from the State Water Resources Control Board collected black mussels from Treasure Island for use in a new study by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association (NOAA) on "emerging contaminants."...
February 2010
California Department of Water Resources Intervenes in Consolidated Delta Smelt Litigation
On December 1, 2009, California's Department of Water Resources (DWR) intervened in the ongoing consolidated Delta smelt case (San Luis & Delta-Mendota Water Authority et al v. Salazar et al.) in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) regarding the conservation steps to preserve the endangered Delta smelt....
February 2010
Following the District Court's Upholding of Oklahoma's Regulation of Water Subject to the Red River Compact, Tarrant Amends Its Complaint and the Litigation Continues
To meet long-term water planning projections, cities and water districts in north Texas have looked to Oklahoma's resources, including water feeding into the Red River, which flows through portions of Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana on its way to the Gulf of Mexico....
February 2010
House Passes White Mountain Apache Water Rights Quantification Act
Along with two other tribal water rights settlements in New Mexico, on January 21, 2010 and by a vote of 262-147, the House passed the White Mountain Apache Water Rights Quantification Act (HR 1065--WMAWRQA) introduced by Representative Ann Kirkpatrick (D-AZ)....
February 2010
Colorado Supreme Court Examines Whether Prevailing Party Costs Are Available to Parties Supporting State Engineer's Groundwater Rules in Court
In this case, the Colorado Supreme Court clarified that parties filing statements supporting the State Engineer's proposed groundwater rules are entitled to an award of prevailing party costs in the Water Court's discretion....
February 2010
Recent Investigations, Settlements, Penalties and Sanctions
Editor's Notice: Complaints and indictments discussed below are merely allegations unless they are proven in a court of law of competent jurisdiction. All accused are presumed innocent until convicted or judged liable. Most settlements are subject to a 30-day public comment period....
February 2010
U.S. Senator Cardin Sponsors Aggressive Chesapeake Bay Restoration Bill
A bill introduced by U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-Md.) seeks to speed progress in restoring the impaired Chesapeake Bay, although opposition to the ambitious bill has already surfaced among the poultry industry....
|
