• By BILL LODGE
• Advocate staff writer
• Published: Mar 30, 2010 - Page: 1B

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The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency contends an environmental group cannot pursue a civil lawsuit against Baton Rouge for alleged Clean Water Act violations at three sewage treatment plants.

City-parish officials and representatives of the citizens group, Louisiana Environmental Action Network, confirmed the EPA’s position Monday.

“We’re continuing with this lawsuit,” said Marylee Orr, LEAN’s executive director, on Monday.

“This won’t stop us. I’m very disappointed in the EPA, but this won’t stop us,” she said.

Parish Attorney Mary Roper said the EPA’s opinion boosts the city-parish position that citizen lawsuits are not permitted while progress is being made toward a January 2015 deadline for compliance with the Clean Water Act.

“We feel confident that this suit will be summarily dismissed,” Roper said.

A request for comment was sent Monday to Dave Bary, a spokesman for the EPA’s Region 6 headquarters in Dallas.

Neither Bary nor any other EPA official issued any statement.

LEAN sued the city-parish last week in U.S. District Court.

The group alleged sewage treatment plants have dumped inadequately treated wastewater into the Mississippi River at least 60 times since Jan. 1, 2008.

LEAN also argues each release violated the Clean Water Act.

The group is asking U.S. District Judge John V. Parker to fine the city-parish more than $2 million.

The chief of the EPA’s water enforcement branch in Dallas, Scott McDonald, sent a letter Thursday to Adam Babich, director of the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic.

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