Group Drops Suit After EPA Partly Rejects Montana Water Rules

A conservation group declared victory after the EPA disapproved “core sections” of Montana’s revised water quality standards, and the group notified a federal court in the state that it was dropping its related lawsuit.

Upper Missouri Waterkeeper sued the Environmental Protection Agency after it missed its deadline to either approve or reject the state’s updated standards. The agency’s delay violated the Clean Water Act, the group told the US District Court for the District of Montana, and the state’s less protective standards put human health and the environment at risk.

The EPA said in a letter dated May 10 that ...