U.S. Supreme Court,
Environmental & Energy
Mar. 5, 2025
Supreme Court limits EPA authority over water quality standards
In a 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in favor of San Francisco, limiting the Environmental Protection Agency's ability to hold permit holders responsible when water quality falls below federal standards. The ruling, written by Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr., continues a trend of restricting EPA jurisdiction under the Clean Water Act. Justice Amy Coney Barrett, in a partial dissent, argued that the decision undermines the agency's regulatory authority.
In a further limitation of the Clean Water Act, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in favor of the city and county of San Francisco that the Environmental Protection Agency could not hold polluters responsible when water quality fell below the agency's standards.
The decision reversed a divided 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals panel ruling that had denied review of a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, or NPDES, permit for its Oceanside combined sewer system and w...
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