In re Chesapeake Bay Foundation

On June 13, 2023, a Maryland Circuit Court granted a consent motion for limited remand in cases challenging the Maryland Department of the Environment’s final Industrial Stormwater General Permit. The environmental groups challenging the permit had cited “major flaws” in the permit, including failure to consider the impact of climate change and reliance on outdated precipitation data to inform storm design standards. The Baltimore Sun <a href="https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/environment/bs-md--20230616-zns3jgxmyjbsnn4a77grwldyli-story.html">reported</a> that the State agreed to reevaluate some portions of the permit and reopen the permit for public comment. The Sun article indicated that “MDE officials felt the environmental groups’ gripes with the permit weren’t warranted, but agreed to additional public comment because it ‘may benefit all parties and conserve judicial resources at this stage of the proceedings.’”