From ScotFive-justice majority restores Trump-era policy on water pollution, provoking more criticism of emergency docketublog:

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A divided Supreme Court on Wednesday reinstated a Trump-era environmental policy that makes it harder for states to block projects that may cause water pollution. The unsigned and unexplained decision prompted Chief Justice John Roberts to join the court’s three liberal justices in criticizing the majority’s use of the emergency docket.

The court’s decision “renders the Court’s emergency docket not for emergencies at all,” Justice Elena Kagan wrote in dissent. “The docket becomes only another place for merits determinations — except made without full briefing and argument.”

Roberts joined Kagan’s dissent, as did Justices Stephen Breyer and Sonia Sotomayor .

The case, Louisiana v. American Rivers, involved the role of states in enforcing the Clean Water Act. Under longstanding federal regulations, states can issue or deny permits for projects — such as the construction of new pipelines — that could pollute rivers or streams. But industry groups complained that some states were abusing their permitting authority to stymie projects for reasons that had nothing to do with water quality.

In response to those concerns, the Environmental Protection Administration under the Trump administration issued a regulation in 2020 that curtailed the role of the states in the permitting process. Environmental groups challenged that regulation. While the challenge was pending, President Joe Biden took office, and his administration announced its intent to replace the Trump-era regulation with its own policy.

- From Wikiedia: Clean Water Act.

Vetoed by Nixon. Veto overridden.

The Clean Water Act (CWA) is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution. Its objective is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters; recognizing the responsibilities of the states in addressing pollution and providing assistance to states to do so, including funding for publicly owned treatment works for the improvement of wastewater treatment; and maintaining the integrity of wetlands.[2]

The Clean Water Act was one of the United States' first and most influential modern environmental laws. Its laws and regulations are primarily administered by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in coordination with state governments, though some of its provisions, such as those involving filling or dredging, are administered by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Its implementing regulations are codified at 40 C.F.R. Subchapters D, N, and O (Parts 100-140, 401-471, and 501-503).