Legal Cases
Georgia Supreme Court Upholds Anti-Degradation Provision in Gwinnett Case
On November 23, 2004, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled in favor of UCR and others with a landmark interpretation of Georgia’s anti-degradation provisions, stating that sewage treatment plants are “not allowed to discharge water that is more polluted than it reasonably needs to be ….”
This decision settled key questions in a lawsuit filed in 2001 by UCR, Lake Lanier Association, Sierra Club and Terry Hughey against the state EPD and Gwinnett County over a permit allowing the County to discharge 40 million gallons per day of treated sewage into Lake Lanier—a high quality water, that provides drinking water for metro Atlanta, and is visited by more than 8 million people every year.
Georgia water laws implementing the federal CWA require a two-pronged anti-degradation review prior to allowing the discharge of pollutants into high-quality waters, like Lake Lanier. That review must prove that discharges that degrade waters are necessary to provide social or economic development and that treatment plants are using the best practicable technology to remove pollutants prior to using a permit. In the 6 to 1 decision, the court found that the plant can remove more pollutants than the permit required and thus violates the anti-degradation rules.
Lake Lanier Association’s attorney Steve O’Day with Smith, Gambrell & Russell argued the case before the Supreme Court, assisted by Andy Thompson. UCR and Sierra Club were represented by Justine Thompson with the Georgia Center for Law in the Public Interest.
The decision is available online.
State Responds by Changing Anti-Degradation Rules
Just two months after the state EPD’s loss in the Supreme Court for issuing a permit that failed to comply with the anti-degradation rule, the state EPD announced its plan to change the anti-degradation rule.
The rule change would remove “the highest and best practicable technology” language from the rule and replace it with a requirement for “the highest statutory and regulatory requirements.” UCR, Lake Lanier Association, the Georgia Water Coalition and many of our other environmental allies were vocal about our opposition to the rule change, sending comment letters, letters to the Board and speaking at Board meetings and EPD public hearings. Yet, despite the public outcry, the Board passed the rule change in their October meeting with only three members voting in opposition.
It is not entirely clear what the effect of the rule change will be, but the underlying motivation for the state to change the rule was an attempt to avoid the GA Supreme Court’s ruling in our Gwinnett discharge permit case. However, UCR believes that the Supreme Court’s opinion still applies, and we will continue to fight any attempts to degrade water quality.
Click here for comment letters and other information on this issue.
Please also visit these other Wastewater cases:
City of Atlanta Sewers
Fieldale Farms Clean Up Toxic Discharges
Intent to Sue Letters Bring Results
Private Sewage Plant on Lake Lanier Brought into Compliance
