The scope of what Clean Water Act National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permits may lawfully require continues to narrow. On April 29, 2026, in Northwest Environmental Advocates (NWEA) v. DEQ, the Oregon Court of Appeals upheld the decision of the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) to renew an NPDES permit without a narrative
EPA Proposes to Narrow Scope of Clean Water Act Section 401 Water Quality Certifications – Comment Deadline Looming
- Comment Deadline: February 17, 2026, via the Federal eRulemaking Portal, email (OW-Docket@epa.gov), or mail. Comments must be submitted in writing and identified with Docket ID No. EPA‑HQ‑OW‑2025‑2929.
- Adoption: Expected in Spring 2026 (subject to comments received).
On January 13, 2026, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced a proposed rule
Supreme Court Holds Clean Water Act Permit Required for Some Discharges to Groundwater
Last Thursday, the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Clean Water Act (“CWA”) requires a permit to discharge pollutants that reach “navigable waters” through groundwater, but only if the discharge is the “functional equivalent of a direct discharge” to the navigable water.1 In reaching this decision, the Court took the middle ground. It rejected both the Ninth Circuit’s interpretation that the CWA requires a source to obtain a permit whenever pollutants found in a navigable water are “fairly traceable” to that source, and arguments by Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) and others that a permit is never required for discharges of pollutants that reach a navigable water through groundwater.
Continue Reading Supreme Court Holds Clean Water Act Permit Required for Some Discharges to Groundwater