Sierra Club v. Union Oil Co.
United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
813 F.2d 1480 (1987)
- Written by Sarah Hoffman, JD
Facts
The National Pollution Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) largely relied on companies to self-monitor their emissions. It required sampling to be reported, and the person performing the sampling was required to certify that the information in the report was accurate. The Sierra Club (plaintiff) brought a citizen’s suit against Union Oil Co. (defendant) on the grounds that Union Oil’s emissions had exceeded the amount allowed under its NPDES permit 76 times. At trial, the evidence showed that according to Union Oil’s self-monitoring reports, it had exceeded its permitted limits on several occasions. Union Oil argued that several of the NPDES permit violations should be excused because they were due to sampling errors rather than excessive emissions. The district court agreed, holding that Union Oil had not violated its NPDES permit because the reports showing excessive amounts were caused by sampling errors and the emissions limits had not been exceeded. The Sierra Club appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Pregerson, J.)
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