\u3cem\u3eBennett v. Spear\u3c/em\u3e: A New Interpretation of the Citizen-Suit Provision

This Note examines the effect the Supreme Court\u27s decision in Bennett v. Spear will have when the analysis used is applied to other environmental acts that include citizen-suit provisions. In particular, this Note will address how this decision might affect the protection of wetlands under the Clean Water Act. First, this Note will provide a review of the decision in Bennett v. Spear. Second, this Note will discuss the significance of wetlands and the Clean Water Act. Next, this Note will explain the history of the citizen-suit provision that is a part of so many environmental acts. This Note will also examine the actual language of the citizen-suit provisions of the ESA and the Clean Water Act and how the language of these acts might be interpreted in a similar manner. The Note concludes that, although legally sound, the Supreme Court\u27s decision in Bennett v. Spear compromises the very reason that the ESA, the Clean Water Act, and other environmental acts were drafted: to protect and preserve the environment