Environmental Laws

Former EPA officials back greens in Clean Water Act case

Maui County, Hawaii, wastewater treatment facilities at issue in Supreme Court litigation. Warren Gretz/NREL Ellen M. Gilmer, E&E News reporter Greenwire: Monday, July 22, 2019 States, tribes, scientists and former EPA leaders lent their support last week to environmentalists engaged in a high-stakes Supreme Court battle over federal water protections. In a series of amicus briefs submitted Friday, the supporters argued that the Clean Water Act’s permitting program applies to pollution that takes an indirect … Read more

See the polluters Maui County has aligned themselves with

On July 19, 11 different groups filed friends of the court briefs in the Lahaina injection wells Supreme Court case. These groups include former EPA Administrators, 13 states, a Native American tribe, craft brewers, and clean water advocates. On the other side, Maui County has aligned themselves with Republican states and polluters across the country. The dirtiest industries like oil, gas, pipelines, mining, and factory farms are supporting Maui in hopes that they will be … Read more

Enviros Urge Justices To Uphold 9th Circ. Groundwater Ruling

By Juan Carlos Rodriguez Law360 (July 12, 2019, 10:52 PM EDT) — Green groups on Friday urged the U.S. Supreme Courtto uphold the Ninth Circuit’s holding that Clean Water Act permits may be required for pollution sources that discharge contaminants via groundwater. The Hawaii Wildlife Fund, Sierra Club, Surfrider Foundation and West Maui Preservation Association said Congress clearly intended the act to cover unpermitted pollution discharges that “actually and foreseeably” reach navigable surface waters. They said Maui County, … Read more

Stop pollution of Maui coral reefs

Honolulu Star-Advertiser, 2/27/2019  The Clean Water Act (CWA), which took shape during the early 1970s, bans the dumping of pollutants directly into surface waters, ranging from wetlands and rivers to oceans. Whether the federal law’s prohibition also should apply to indirect dumping that has the same effect is a matter expected to go before the nation’s highest court later this year.  At the center of the debate is Maui’s Lahaina Wastewater Reclamation Facility, which injects … Read more

Lahaina Injection Wells Lawsuit: Enough Already! Just Fix the Problem

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser agrees – Enough already, Maui County! Stop trying to appeal the lawsuit and start fixing the problem!   Call/Email the Mayor & Maui Council Chair and say “ENOUGH ALREADY! Stop wasting the public’s money to defend illegal injection wells in West Maui. Spend the money instead on fixing the problem!” Mayor Alan Arakawa 270-7855 Mayors.Office@co.maui.hi.us Council Chair Mike White 270-5507 mike.white@mauicounty.us   Background: $3 million down the toilet – Enough Already! The County … Read more

Sand Mining Moratorium Passed! But the Fight Continues…

After more than seven months of discussion, on January 5, 2018, the Maui County Council passed the Sand Mining Moratorium into law, the final vote 7 – 2 (Yuki Lei Sugimura and Riki Hokama were the no votes). But the bill provides exemption from the moratorium to anyone with an already existing permit. In Nov. 2017, the Dept. of Public Works RENEWED Maui Lani Partners’ permit for work in their Phase 9 site – even though … Read more