Having considered all three reasons that EPA advanced in denying the petition and applied the highly deferential standard under Massachusetts, the Court finds that EPA’s denial of NWEA’s petition and refusal to make a necessity determination was arbitrary, capricious, and ungrounded in the CWA. Based on this finding, the Court VACATES EPA’s denial of NWEA’s petition and REMANDS this matter to EPA for further consideration consistent with this Order.
Washington waters may get more protection from toxics as a Federal Court orders U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to evaluate the need to protect salmon and orca whales.
A core component of NWEA’s mission is to ensure that Washington’s water quality standards—which must, by law, protect these salmonid species and the species that depend upon them, such as the Southern Resident killer whales—are both legally and scientifically supported. Often this has required litigation. And often that litigation has proved successful, which I view as a failing comment on Washington’s progress toward protecting these species as the law requires.
It is strange to settle a case and then continue to litigate it. But such is the strange path of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) in this case. As stated in EPA’s motion for an indefinite stay (ECF 71), the parties have reached a settlement in principle and are only awaiting final approval by senior counsel at the Department of Justice (“DOJ”).
A federal court ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) last night to take the first step towards updating Washington’s water quality standards for 17 key toxic pollutants known to harm endangered salmon, steelhead, and the Southern Resident killer whales that depend upon them.
Based on the foregoing motions and the parties’ joint request, and for good cause shown, the Court hereby VACATES the Order of its December 29, 2021 Opinion and Order (ECF No. 57 at 21, lines 17-19 and 22, lines 6 to 8). In addition, it is hereby ORDERED that: EPA will issue a new decision on Plaintiff’s 2013 Petition relating to water quality standards for the State of Washington to protect aquatic life (the “Petition”) no later than September 1, 2022
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