International Paper Co. v. Ouellette, 479 U.S. 481 (1987) (U.S. Supreme Court)
International Paper Co. v.
Does the Clean Water Act preempt application of an affected state's common-law nuisance (and related tort) claims against an out-of-state point source, or may injured parties rely on the affected state's law to obtain relief?
The Clean Water Act establishes a comprehensive, permit-based regime (33 U.S.C. § 1342) for regulating point-source discharges and channels primary regulatory authority to the source state or EPA, while preserving certain state roles through savings clauses (33 U.S.C. §§ 1365(e), 1370). The Act preempts application of an affected state's common law to an out-of-state point source because such extraterritorial application would conflict with the uniform permitting scheme and subject permittees to inconsistent, multiple standards. However, the CWA does not preempt state common-law claims brought under the law of the source state, so long as those claims and remedies do not conflict with or undermine the Act or the terms of the applicable NPDES permit.
The Clean Water Act preempts application of Vermont common law to an out-of-state source discharging from New York into Lake Champlain. Respondents may proceed, if at all, only under New York (the source state's) common law. The judgment was reversed and the case remanded to allow amendment to assert claims under New York law.
Ouellette is a cornerstone in environmental federalism and preemption doctrine. It teaches that: (1) comprehensive federal regulatory schemes can coexist with state tort law, but only within carefully defined boundaries; (2) savings clauses are read in harmony with statutory structure and objectives, not as carte blanche to undermine them; and (3) in interstate pollution disputes, the choice of law is the source state's law. For practitioners and students, the case has direct consequences for forum selection, pleading strategy (including choice-of-law allegations), and the scope of available remedies alongside NPDES permitting.