New Waters of the U.S. Rule Halted Nationwide
New Waters of the U.S. Rule Halted Nationwide
The 6th Circuit, in a 2-1 decision filed on October 9, 2010, halted nationwide the application of the Environmental Protection Agency and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ new definition for waters of the U.S. under the Clean Water Act. Barring further appellate review or the conclusion of this litigation, the nationwide status quo for waters of the U.S. shall revert to the former definition for such waters.
The stay was granted in order for the law to be consistent with Congress’s stated purpose of establishing a national policy for waters of the U.S., as only certain states had challenged the new definition and prior to this ruling a preliminary injunction against the new definition had been in effect in only 13 states. In making this decision, the court concluded that the petitioners had demonstrated a substantial possibility of success on the merits of their claims, and that there was no compelling evidence that issuance of the stay would cause the petitioners any immediate harm.