LSI 2010 NRD Santa Fe final conference binder 072110.pdf

Allan Kanner of Kanner & Whiteley, L.L.C. Speaker 23: 54
defense to liability for NRD.
8. Standing to Bring NRD Claims
Defendants may also contend that the state does not have sufficient standing to bring
NRD claims. In Department of Environmental Protection v. Jersey Central Power and Light Co.,
the State of New Jersey filed suit against a public utility engaged in the operation of a nuclear
power plant. 212
The court held that the state, seeking to recover damages as parens patriae for
damage to fisheries caused by the defendant’s cooling water discharges during plant operations,
had standing to seek both an injunction and damages. 213
The court rejected the defendant’s argument that the state did not have a proprietary right
to the fish in its waters sufficient to support an action for damages. 214
Affirming the judgment of
the lower court, the court stated that the State of New Jersey has “not only the right, but also the
affirmative fiduciary obligation to ensure that the rights of the public to a viable marine
environment are protected, and to seek compensation for any diminution in the trust corpus.” 215
The court further said that “absent some special interest in some private citizen, it was
questionable whether anyone but the state could be considered the proper party to sue for
recovery of damages to the environment.” 216
212 336 A.2d 750 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. 1975), aff’d., 336 A.2d 750 (N.J. Super. Ct. App. Div. 1975), rev’d on
other grounds, 351 A.2d 337 (N.J. 1976).
213 Id. at 759.
214 Id. at 758-759.
215 Id. at 759.
216 Id.
© 52
Law Seminars International | Natural Resource Damages | 07/16/10 in Santa Fe, NM