Law360 Quotes Michael Campbell Regarding New EPA Water Rule

Partner Michael Campbell was quoted in Law360 in an article titled “Clarified EPA Water Rule Still Spurs Authority Questions.” The article discusses the scope of the newly approved Waters of the United States Rule, or Clean Water Rule, which is intended to clarify which American waterways are under the jurisdiction of the federal government.

Campbell addresses the use of the phrase “significant-nexus,” first used by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy in a 2006 decision limiting Clean Water Act jurisdiction to those waters that have a significant nexus to downstream navigable waters, not just any hydrologic connection.

“The biggest change is the [case-specific] significant-nexus waters definition,” he said. “I think they’ve dialed that back a bit. Before, it was just kind of open-ended to any water that has a significant nexus. In addition to adding a little bit more detail about what ‘significant nexus’ means, they’ve defined it in a way that limits it to five specific types of features.”

Read “Clarified EPA Water Rule Still Spurs Authority Questions,” published May 27, 2015. (Subscription required.)