A Shearman & Sterling Pro Bono team recently helped the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) win a Clean Water Act dispute centered around Vermont's Lake Champlain, one of the largest freshwater lakes in the United States.

In October 2008, CLF challenged the US Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) approval of a water quality plan for Lake Champlain, arguing in federal court that the plan did not do enough to ensure that the levels of phosphorus in the lake would be reduced. Excess phosphorus, introduced into the lake through polluted runoff from wastewater treatment plants and other sources, contributes to harmful levels of algae. Lake Champlain supplies drinking water for approximately 250,000 people and is an important source of tourism revenue in the region. The EPA's 2002 water quality plan for Lake Champlain, CLF argued, did not sufficiently ensure a reduction of phosphorus from polluted runoff, and thus did not satisfy the requirements of the Clean Water Act.

The State of Vermont intervened in the suit and filed a motion to dismiss the complaint. Vermont argued that the court lacked jurisdiction over the matter, that CLF’s action was untimely, and that CLF failed to join a necessary party to the suit. After the EPA and CLF agreed to settle the suit and EPA sought to remand the water quality plan for its reconsideration, Vermont filed a motion in opposition to reconsideration. The court denied Vermont’s motion to dismiss and remanded the matter to the EPA for reconsideration of the plan after oral arguments were held in July 2010. On January 24, 2011, the EPA agreed to withdraw its approval of the plan, noting that there has not been enough improvement in the lake's health since the plan was implemented.

“The EPA’s decision, which will have positive ripple effects on Clean Water Act administration nationally, vindicates CLF’s long-running effort to correct the scientific and legal flaws in the Lake Champlain pollution budget, or ‘Total Maximum Daily Load,’” said Anthony Iarrapino, CLF’s lead counsel in the matter. “The Shearman & Sterling team’s diligent and savvy work on this case contributed significantly to this precedent-setting result. Shearman & Sterling’s lawyers provided timely strategic and tactical guidance, superb logistical support, first-rate memos and court filings, and friendly camaraderie as we navigated a complicated procedural path to victory.”

Of counsel George Wade (New York-Litigation) led the Shearman & Sterling team, which included associates Alexandra Dosman (New York-International Arbitration), Quentin Wiest (New York-Bankruptcy), and Christopher Greer (New York-Real Estate).

Shearman & Sterling has assisted CLF, New England's oldest environmental advocacy group, with a number of pro bono matters. In 2008, the firm began helping a CLF affiliate, CLF Ventures, with the formation of the Northeast Wind Collaborative (NEW), a non-profit trade organization made up of prominent wind power developers. That same year, a pro bono team helped CLF successfully challenge the Massachusetts Highway Department in a Clean Water Act case.