GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. -- Last month's Supreme Court ruling on the Clean Water Act won't impact Michigan developers directly.
But it will affect how businesses apply for wetlands permits. The ruling establishes a more stringent test to determine if the Clean Water Act applies to a wetland. That's according to Dennis Donohue, a partner at Warner, Norcross and Judd who specializes in environmental law.
"So, presumably, the EPA would be involved in a lot less reviews of Michigan permit applications. So, I think the application process - if you're a business in Michigan - should go a lot more smoothly," Donahue tells WOOD Radio.
The Supreme Court ruled that the Clean Water Act only covers wetlands that directly connect to federal waters like rivers and lakes. Michigan is one of three states that have federal authority to administer their own wetlands program under state law.
The opinion issued in the case of Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency reversed a Ninth Circuit ruling that an Idaho couple's property could be regulated under the CWA. Michael and Chantell Sackett had been grappling with the EPA for years. Their property is near Priest Lake and they want to build a house on an empty lot there. The EPA ordered them to stop construction in 2007 because their property has wetlands that are protected by the CWA.
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