Court's Cert Denial Could Undercut EPA's CWA Settlements, Lawyer Says
Anna Wildeman, a partner in Troutman Pepper's Environmental + Natural Resources Practice Group, was quoted in the June 14, 2023 Inside EPA article, " Court's Cert Denial Could Undercut EPA's CWA Settlements, Lawyer Says."
Anna Wildeman, who was deputy head of the EPA water office in the Trump administration and now works as an attorney at the law firm Troutman Pepper, told Inside EPA that the 4th Circuit's approach could conflict with several state agencies' enforcement models that follow a "stepped" process in which they engage with alleged violators to gather evidence, offer assistance with compliance, and only later pursue remedial action and fines.
Legal action, she said, is usually reserved for especially egregious violations, repeat offenders, or those who fail to pay penalties and take other required actions.
"The 4th Circuit decision could be interpreted as only precluding citizen suits if a state has actually filed a court action seeking to remedy alleged environmental violations. This could open up many owners and operators to citizen suits, even after they have conducted remedial actions or paid a penalty to resolve the matter," Wildeman said.