Representation on Water Supply, Use, & Quality
Marten helps local governments, utilities, and other public water supply and treatment authorities ensure they deliver clean water to their constituents. We help secure funding of, and reimbursement for, cleaning contaminated water supplies polluted by historical practices. Where negotiations fail, we litigate against defendants ranging from the U.S. Department of Defense to global aerospace companies to dry cleaners and other industries that have used and released hazardous substances to groundwater and other media.
Marten also helps manufacturing, agriculture, and development industries overcome business challenges and seize competitive opportunities arising from and affecting their water supply, use, and quality. No longer merely a local resource allocation or land use issue, water supply, use, and quality are now increasingly driven by federal regulatory burdens and enforcement scrutiny, whether water quality under the Clean Water Act (CWA) or species protection under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). Total Maximum Daily Loads (TMDLs), water quality trading, habitat and ESA requirements, storage, transfer and conveyance rights, wetlands preservation and mitigation, agricultural and forestry management practices, watershed-based planning and permitting—all must be considered. Marten lawyers see the full picture.
We help wastewater dischargers obtain and protect their discharge permits. Our former U.S. EPA and state AG officials bring an insider’s perspective to navigating the web of water quality laws and regulations that govern discharges to surface water and groundwater. We leverage experience and relationships to help our clients obtain approvals, negotiate applicable water quality standards and permit requirements, and resolve regulatory enforcement matters so operations can proceed uninterrupted. Where disputes cannot be resolved informally, we represent our clients in contested administrative proceedings, and in court.
Our attorneys have handled high profile permit challenges, including the defense of Clean Water Act Section 402 permits issued for oil and gas production, commercial and residential construction and development, and industrial operations; Clean Water Act Section 404 permits issued for residential and industrial development; and Clean Water Act Section 401 permits issued for oil and gas production and the expansion of an international airport. Our attorneys also regularly defend clients in administrative and citizen suit enforcement actions.
Capabilities:
- Administrative Enforcement Actions
- Appeals and Variances
- CERCLA Cost Recovery and Contribution
- Clean Water Act Sections 303(d), 316(a), 401, 402, and 404 Permitting
- Clean Water Act Citizen Suits
- Compliance Counseling
- Wetlands Permitting and Mitigation
- Water Quality and Wetlands Litigation
- NPDES Permitting
- Regulatory Development
- Stormwater Management
- Emerging contaminants/PFAS
Resources:
- "Stormwater Permitting and Management Requirements: A Practical Guidance® Practice Note by Jeff B. Kray and Jack L. Ross, Marten LLP" (December 2020)
