On Thursday, April 23 (my Mother’s Birthday), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 6 to 3 that groundwater must be considered in Clean Water Act (CWA) permitting. The case involved a Maui sewage treatment plant that had permits to discharge waste directly into the ocean as point sources (from pipes). University hydrogeologists found high levels of nitrate and warm water in the ocean affecting coral reefs discharging from groundwater that came from the treatment plant indirectly. The court ruled that CWA permits must consider groundwater discharges.
For more details, checkout these articles:
Hydrologists should be happy. Big Supreme Court ruling bolsters groundwater science
“Tracing the movement of pollutants through groundwater is tricky work, says Thomas Harter, a hydrologist at the University of California, Davis, who helped draft an amicus brief to the court from several scientific associations. Much of what’s happening is underground, obscured except for data gathered from test wells and geologic samples drilled from boreholes. Impacts can take decades to materialize as water and contaminants slowly seep through the earth.
Computer models coupled with direct observations of water flow, pollution levels, and geology can predict how chemicals are likely to flow and interact with the chemistry of surrounding rocks. But, “There are huge uncertainties to this,” says Harter, who studies groundwater pollution from California farms. “It’s not unlike trying to predict the weather.” (During oral argument of the case in November 2019, however, (Justice Stephen) Breyer remarked that briefs laying out the science of tracking groundwater pollution had impressed him. “The scientists really convinced me they’re geniuses and they can trace all kinds of things,” he said.)”
SUPREME COURT LEAVES THE CLEAN WATER ACT INTACT
Victory: Court decision leaves in place vital protections for the nation’s oceans, rivers, lakes
EarthJustice (argued the winning case)
“The following is a statement from David Henkin, Earthjustice attorney who argued the case defending clean water:
“This decision is a huge victory for clean water. The Supreme Court has rejected the Trump administration’s effort to blow a big hole in the Clean Water Act’s protections for rivers, lakes, and oceans.”
COUNTY OF MAUI, HAWAII v. HAWAII WILDLIFE FUND ET AL.
“The Clean Water Act forbids “any addition” of any pollutant from “any point source” to “navigable waters” without an appropriate permit from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).”
In addition to our science of using tracers to detect movement of groundwater contamination, we will be tracking how this Supreme Court decision affects similar investigations that we are working on!
