A federal judicial panel has refused to consolidate the lawsuits against the definition of Waters of the U.S. in the EPA’s Clean Water rule.
The Obama administration had sought to combine them into one case in the federal district court in Washington, DC. The plaintiffs opposed centralizing the cases.
The panel ruled that bringing the litigation to DC would be an inconvenience to the parties and witnesses involved. And, it pointed out there have already been different rulings in some of the cases – such as the federal court ruling in North Dakota which blocked implementation of the water rule in 13 states.
Last week, a federal appeals court temporarily blocked implementation of the Clean Water rule in ALL states, a move applauded by the agriculture industry.
Source: www.brownfieldagnews.com