Chevron Mining Inc. v. United States

TYMKOVICH, Chief Judge.

Under the federal environmental laws, the owner of property contaminated with hazardous substances or a person who arranges for the disposal of hazardous substances may be strictly liable for subsequent clean-up costs. In this case, the United States owned national forest lands in New Mexico that were mined over several generations by Chevron Mining Inc. The question we must resolve is whether the United States is a “potentially responsible party” (PRP), see, e.g., 42 U.S.C. § 9620(e)(6)', for the environmental contamination located on that land.

We conclude that under…