Violet v. United States Environmental Protection Agency

654 F. Supp. 56, 25 ERC 1709, 17 Envtl. L. Rep. (Envtl. Law Inst.) 20703, 25 ERC (BNA) 1709, 1987 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5047
CourtDistrict Court, D. Rhode Island
DecidedJanuary 22, 1987
DocketCiv. A. No. 85-0749 P
StatusPublished

This text of 654 F. Supp. 56 (Violet v. United States Environmental Protection Agency) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Rhode Island primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Violet v. United States Environmental Protection Agency, 654 F. Supp. 56, 25 ERC 1709, 17 Envtl. L. Rep. (Envtl. Law Inst.) 20703, 25 ERC (BNA) 1709, 1987 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5047 (D.R.I. 1987).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

PETTINE, Senior District Judge.

The plaintiffs in this case, the State and the Attorney General of Rhode Island (collectively referred to hereinafter as “the State”), brought this action for declaratory and injunctive relief seeking to have this Court declare unlawful and set aside certain remedial actions which the defendant Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) proposed for implementation at the Pitillo hazardous waste site in Coventry, Rhode Island. Specifically, the State objects to the EPA’s plan to dispose of chemical-laden soil at a landfill on-site at the Pitillo farm. Currently before this Court is the EPA’s motion to dismiss this case on the ground that legislative enactments have rendered this case moot. The EPA contends that the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986, Pub.L. 99-499, 100 Stat. 1613 (“the Superfund Amendments”), signed into law on October 17, 1986, have mooted the controversy between the par[58]*58ties. The plaintiffs concede that the Superfund Amendments have rendered moot an important aspect of this case, but argue the existence of “live” controversies between the parties which require court adjudication.

FACTUAL BACKGROUND

On or about September 30,1985, Michael R. Deland, Regional Administrator of Region I of the EPA and a named defendant in this action, issued the Record of Decision (“ROD”) for the Picillo hazardous waste site in Coventry, Rhode Island. The Record of Decision outlined the EPA’s choice of remedial measures to be undertaken at the Picillo site, a hazardous waste repository listed on the EPA’s National Priorities List and subject to the provisions of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation and Liability Act of 1980 (“CERCLA”), 42 U.S.C. §§ 9601-9651 (1982), commonly known as “Superfund.” Among many remedial measures proposed in the ROD, the EPA ordered that soils contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyls (“PCBs”) and phenols be disposed of at a landfill at the Picillo property.

The State has contested the EPA’s decision to dispose of the PCB-contaminated soil at the Picillo site. The State contends that the groundwater elevation at the Picillo site makes on-site landfill of the contaminated soil an inappropriate mode of disposal. The plaintiffs further object to the on-site disposal of the PCB-laden soil on the grounds that such a disposal method is not technologically feasible and reliable, will not effectively minimize damage or provide adequate protection to the public health, welfare or environment, and will force the State of Rhode Island to incur long-term costs and responsibilities in connection with the maintenance of the landfill. The State has proposed an alternative, off-site disposal plan for the PCB-contaminated soils, and asks this Court to declare the EPA’s on-site disposal plan unlawful and to order the defendants to select a remedial plan for the soil which would comport with state and federal law.

Prior to a final decision in this matter, Congress enacted the Superfund Amendments which the President signed into law on October 17, 1986. The defendants interpret section 121(d)(2)(C)(iv) of the Amendments to require the EPA to conform its remedial actions at the Picillo site to the conflicting state standard. The defendants concede the lack of continuing validity of the ROD as it relates to the PCB-contaminated soil, and they urge this Court to dismiss this action as moot.

The plaintiffs have opposed dismissal of this case, and argue the continuing existence of “live” controversies pertaining to the disposal of the PCB-contaminated soils currently found at the Picillo farm. The State argues that the nature of the remedy, funding for the selected remedy and whether the remedy will be consistent with the National Contingency Plan so as to permit cost recovery from parties held liable for waste deposited at the site remain in contest. In response to the plaintiffs’ contentions, the defendants argue that any challenge to the EPA’s remedial actions proposed for the Picillo site are not ripe for review and that the State must await final agency action before any challenge to the EPA's remedial measures may be brought. DISCUSSION

Jurisdiction granted to the federal courts under Article III of the United States Constitution limits the federal courts to adjudicating “cases” and “controversies,” a concept which the United States Supreme Court has noted embodies two “complementary but somewhat different limitations.” Flast v. Cohen, 392 U.S. 83, 95, 88 S.Ct. 1942, 1949-50, 20 L.Ed.2d 947 (1968). The “cases” and “controversies” requirement limits federal court inquiry to those issues presented “in an adversary context and in a form historically viewed as capable of resolution through the judicial process” and it also defines the role assigned to the judiciary in our three-part system of government, ensuring that the courts do not intrude into areas within the ambit of the legislative or executive branches. Flast v. Cohen, 392 U.S. 83, 95, [59]*5988 S.Ct. 1942, 1949-50, 20 L.Ed.2d 947 (1968); United States Parole Comm’n v. Geraghty, 445 U.S. 388, 395-96, 100 S.Ct. 1202, 1208, 63 L.Ed.2d 479 (1980).

The concept of mootness derives from the Article III requirement that federal courts are limited to adjudicating “cases” and “controversies,” and stands for the proposition that federal courts are without power to decide questions which cannot affect the rights of the litigants before them. North Carolina v. Rice, 404 U.S. 244, 246, 92 S.Ct. 402, 404, 30 L.Ed.2d 413 (1971). Mootness generally involves a two-part inquiry: whether the issues between the parties are “live” and whether the parties maintain “a legally cognizable interest in the outcome.” United States Parole Comm’n v. Geraghty, 445 U.S. 388, 396, 100 S.Ct. 1202, 1208, 63 L.Ed.2d 479 (1980). Mootness is generally recognized when subsequent acts intervene to eliminate a party’s interest in the outcome of the litigation. See Boston Chapter, NAACP v. Beecher, 716 F.2d 931, 932 (1st Cir.1983), vacated and remanded, 468 U.S. 1206, 104 S.Ct. 3576, 82 L.Ed.2d 874 (1984), reaff'd, 749 F.2d 102 (1st Cir.1984), cert. denied, 471 U.S. 1075, 105 S.Ct. 2154, 85 L.Ed.2d 510 (1985).

The EPA contends that the passage of section 121(d)(2)(C)(iv) of the Superfund Amendments is just such a subsequent development. This provision states:

Where the remedial action selected by the President does not conform to a State standard and the State has initiated a law suit against the Environmental Protection Agency prior to May 1, 1986, to seek to have the remedial action conform to such standard, the President shall conform the remedial action to the State standard. The State shall assure the availability of an off-site facility for such remedial action.

Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act of 1986, Pub.L. No.

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Related

Abbott Laboratories v. Gardner
387 U.S. 136 (Supreme Court, 1967)
Flast v. Cohen
392 U.S. 83 (Supreme Court, 1968)
North Carolina v. Rice
404 U.S. 244 (Supreme Court, 1971)
United States Parole Commission v. Geraghty
445 U.S. 388 (Supreme Court, 1980)
Boston Chapter, NAACP v. Beecher
716 F.2d 931 (First Circuit, 1983)
Wainwright v. Douglas
468 U.S. 1206 (Supreme Court, 1984)

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654 F. Supp. 56, 25 ERC 1709, 17 Envtl. L. Rep. (Envtl. Law Inst.) 20703, 25 ERC (BNA) 1709, 1987 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5047, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/violet-v-united-states-environmental-protection-agency-rid-1987.