The Arkansas Department of Energy & Environment – Division of Environmental Quality (“DEQ”) filed a Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief (“Complaint”) in the United States District Court (“Eastern District – Arkansas”) and a Petition for Review (“Petition”) in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit (“Eighth Circuit”) against the United States Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”).
Both actions arise out of objections EPA raised to Clean Water Act National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (“NPDES”) permits DEQ issued to the City of Springdale (“Springdale”) and Northwest Arkansas Conservation Authority (“NACA”).
Like many federal environmental statutory programmes, Congress encouraged EPA o give the Clean Water Act NPDES permits to states that were willing. In November 1986, Arkansas was granted delegation of the Clean Water Act NPDES Program. It was required to develop program elements, including enough funding to operate a delegated program.
The state’s commitment to implement and maintain the program elements necessary to operate an NPDES program were documented in a Memorandum of Agreement (“MOA”) entered into with EPA many years ago. See the Memorandum of Agreement (“MOA”) between the Arkansas Department of Pollution Control & Ecology (EPA Region VI) regarding the approval of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Program (1986). DEQ is the NPDES permitting authority for Arkansas for more 35 years.
DEQ’s action in the United States District Court contends EPA’s objections to the two NPDES permits were procedurally defective because they were raised after the review period provided by the Memorandum of Understanding between the agencies. See Case No. 4:22-cv-359-BSM. The Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief seeks interim and permanent injunctions directing EPA to withdraw all objections to the Springdale and NACA NPDES licenses.
DEQ’s Petition in the Eighth Circuit argues that EPA’s objections have effectively imposed as a rule numeric nutrient limits in Arkansas without following rulemaking procedures. See Arkansas Department of Energy & Environment v. EPA (et al.), 22-1831.
You can download a copy of the Complaint HereThe Petition Here.
