AGC Appeals Federal Court’s Ruling that EPA Must Set Limits on Sediment in Construction Runoff

On Jan. 30, 2007, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Arlington, VA-based Associated General Contractors of America (AGC) both filed an appeal with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to contest a recent California district court ruling that requires the EPA to issue an "effluent limitation guideline" (ELG) for the "Construction and Development" (C&D) industry.

Such an ELG would set uniform, nationwide limits on the sediment that stormwater can lawfully discharge from construction sites. After years of analysis and outreach, EPA concluded that additional rules are unnecessary, given the evolution of the existing stormwater program.

"EPA recognizes that there is no 'one-size-fits-all' approach to stormwater runoff," says AGC CEO Stephen E. Sandherr. "The better way to protect the environment is to allow state and local authorities to tailor the details of their construction runoff programs to state and local conditions, and not to impose a rigid and inflexible federal standard."

Siding with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) and two states, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California held that EPA had a "nondiscretionary" duty to issue a C&D ELG, and that the agency's failure to take that expensive step violated the Clean Water Act (Natural Resources Defense Council v. U.S. EPA, C.D. Cal., No. CV-04-8307-GHK [RCx], 12/05/06). AGC intervened in the lawsuit, maintaining that Congress gave the agency the discretion to make an informed no-rule decision based on the evidence that it gathered.

Sandherr adds, "AGC believes that EPA's final decision not to issue a C&D ELG was an appropriate use of the agency's discretion under the Clean Water Act and the Administrative Procedures Act, and that the district court lacked jurisdiction to review that action. EPA rightly found that the cost of a C&D ELG would outweigh its benefits; concluding that the most appropriate method to control stormwater discharges from construction and development activities is through the existing stormwater permit program."

AGC agrees with EPA that state and local authorities are in a better position to identify the best practices and techniques to control any erosion or sedimentation that might result from stormwater runoff from the construction job sites within their borders. Additionally, EPA's "Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) program" mandates the use of more stringent control technologies where construction site runoff may be contributing to water quality impairment.

This information was reprinted with permission from the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), the largest and oldest national construction trade association in the United States. AGC represents more than 32,000 firms, including 7,000 of America's leading general contractors and over 11,000 specialty contracting firms. To find out more, visit (www.agc.org).