People of California ex rel. State Water Resources Control Board v. Environmental Protection Agency

Are federal agencies and enclaves within California and Washington required to comply with state procedural requirements with respect to control of water pollution? We hold that they are and we direct the respondent administrator to proceed accordingly and to reconsider the application of the state agencies of Washington and California.

Section 313 of the 1972 Amendments to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act [hereinafter “the Act,” 33 U.S.C. §§ 1251-1376 (Supp. II, 1972)] directs that federal agencies “shall comply with State . . . requirements respecting control and abatement of pollution.” But the issue before us is whether federal agencies should submit to the procedural requirements for securing discharge permits which state regulatory bodies may impose on local dis-chargers under section 402 of the statute, which is also sometimes referred to as the Clean Water Act.

Section 402 of the Act [ 33 U.S.C. § 1342 ] established the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System [hereinafter NPDES]. Thereunder, the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency [hereinafter “the Administrator”] is delegated the initial responsibility for issuing permits for…