Monday
June 25, 2007
ADEQ Director Steve
Owens Issues Statement on Today's U.S. Supreme Court Decision Upholding
Arizona's Water Quality Permitting Program
Source: Arizona Department of Environmental Quality
ADEQ Director Steve Owens issued this statement:
"From the beginning we have operated our state program in accordance with the Clean Water Act. Our state program provides adequate protection for endangered species, and we have always been confident that our program would be upheld in court. We are pleased with today's decision and will now be able to move forward to administer our program to preserve Arizona's precious water resources without being under a cloud of litigation."
Arizona has administered the Arizona Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (AZPDES) program since December 2002 under a delegation agreement with EPA. In early 2003 ADEQ's authority to administer the program was challenged by Defenders of Wildlife in Federal Court. Today's ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court upheld ADEQ's authority to administer the program.