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Administrative Law Keyed to Mawshaw
Friends of the Earth, Inc. v. Laidlaw Environmental Services, Inc.
Citation:
528 U.S. 167 (2000)Facts
In 1986, Laidlaw purchased a hazardous waste incinerator facility in Roebuck, South Carolina, which included a wastewater treatment plant. Laidlaw received an NPDES permit authorizing discharge of treated water into the North Tyger River, subject to limitations on various pollutants, including mercury. Between 1987 and 1995, Laidlaw repeatedly exceeded its mercury discharge limits, violating them 489 times. In 1992, environmental groups FOE and CLEAN sent Laidlaw the required 60-day notice of their intent to file a citizen suit. Before the notice period expired, Laidlaw arranged for South Carolina’s Department of Health and Environmental Control (DHEC) to file a lawsuit against it, which was quickly settled for $100,000 in civil penalties. FOE then filed its citizen suit, seeking declaratory and injunctive relief and civil penalties. The District Court found that Laidlaw’s violations had not demonstrably harmed the environment but imposed civil penalties of $405,800 as deterrence. By the time judgment was rendered, Laidlaw had achieved substantial compliance with its permit.
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