Environmental

Soon after its inception, the firm became a leader within the State of Texas in environmental litigation. For example, in a contested-case proceeding, Tom Buckle in 1982 successfully challenged the request of a sewage treatment plant for a permit to discharge into the main body of Lake Travis. This victory established political, legal, and technical precedent because it was the first time the State denied a discharge permit to a sewage treatment plant with a discharge which would be in compliance with state regulatory standards on the basis that the water quality of the Colorado Highland Lakes could still be impaired. Soon after the decision, John Scanlan was appointed by then Governor Clements to chair a select committee on water quality standards of Lake Travis and Lake Austin.