PUBLISHED
UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE FOURTH CIRCUIT

No. 19
- 2194

SOUTHERN APPALACHIAN MOUNTAIN STEWARDS; APPALACHIAN VOICES; SIERRA CLUB, Plaintiff s - Appellant s ,

v. RED RIVER COAL COMPANY, INCORPORATED, Defendant

- Appellee.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Western District of Virginia , at Big Stone Gap. James P. Jones, District Judge. (2:17

- cv - 00028

- JPJ

- PMS)
Argued : December 8, 2020 Decided: March 30 , 202 1 Amended: March 30, 2021

Before GREGORY , Chief Judge, and NIEMEYER and RICHARDSON, Circuit Judges.
Affirmed by published opinion. Judge Richardson wrote the opinion, in which Chief Judge Gregory and Judge Niemeyer concur red

.
ARGUED: John Michael Becher, APPALACHIAN MOUNTAIN ADVOCATES, Lewisburg, West Virginia, for Appellants. Dabney J. Carr, TROUTMAN PEPPER HAMILTON SANDERS LLP, Richmond, Virginia, for Appellee. ON BRIEF: Peter Morgan, SIERRA CLUB, Denver, Colorado, for Appellants. Brooks M. Smith, TROUTMAN SANDE RS LLP, Richmond, Virginia, for Appellee.2 RICHARDSON, Circuit Judge: Virginia has promulgated water

- quality standards by regulation under the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act (“ Surface Mining Act ”) that are effectively the same as the water

- quality standards under the federal Clean Water Act . Under the Clean Water Act , an operator’s compliance with its issued permit shields it from liability for certain violations of those standards. The Surface M ining Act does not include its own permit liability shield. This raises the question we must answer : When an operator’s conduct is shielded from liability under the Clean Water Act , can the operator still be held liable under the equivalent Surface Minin g Act standards? How we answer this question depends on the Surface Mining Act ’s saving clause , which bars construing the Act in any way that would supersed e , amend, modify, or repeal the Clean Water Act and other laws

. See 30 U.S.C. § 1292(a)(3). Beca use here the Surface Mining Act ’s lack of a permit shield supersedes, amends, or modifies the Clean Water
Act ’s permit shield , we hold that the saving clause prevents liability under the Surface Mining Act for conduct that is otherwise shielded from liability under the Clean Water Act

. So we affirm the district court’s grant of summary judgment for Red River Coal Company on the Surface Mining Act claim

. I. Background
A. T he regulatory scheme The Clean Water Act , the colloquial name of the amended Federal Water Pollution Control Act, regulates the issuance of pollutants from “ point sources ,” generally defined

as any “discernible, confined and discrete conveyance ” such as a pipe , in to United States3 waters. 33 U.S.C. § 1362(14); see also § 12 51 et seq. The core of the Act prohibits “the discharge of any pollutant by any person .” Piney Run Pres

. Ass’n v. C n ty. Comm’rs of Carroll C n ty

. , 268 F.3d 255, 265 (4th Cir. 2001); see § 1311(a). But compliance with a Clean Water Act permit issued under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System serves as an exception to this liability

. § 1342(k); Piney Run , 268 F.3d at 265. 1 Once granted, a permit allows its holder to discharge a limited amount of pollutants. §§ 1311(a), 1342(a), (c). Compliance with that permit “shall be deemed compliance” with the Clean
Water Act’s standards ( namely, the effluent

— wastewater

— limitations, § 1311, water

quality

- related effluent limitations, § 1312, national standards of performance, § 1316, toxic and pre treatment effluent standards, § 1317, and ocean discharge criteria, § 1343 )

. § 1342(k); s ee also E.I

. du Pont de Nemours & Co. v. Train , 430 U.S. 112, 138 n. 28 (1977) (such permits provide “finality”)

. 2 This liability shield not only covers discharges listed

1 Given lawyers’

— particularly environmental ones

— affinity for acronyms, it is no surprise that everyone calls these permits “NPDES permits.” Cf. N. Cheyenne Tribe v. Norton , 503 F.3d 836, 839 n.1 (9th Cir. 2007). While deviations from acronyms can cause c onfusion, we do our best to speak in plain English so that those lacking subject

- matter expertise might understand. Cf. D.C. Circuit Handbook of Practice and Internal Procedures 43 (20 20 )

. So we will refer to these “NPDES permits” as Clean Water Act perm its, though we bow to expediency in using the widely recognized “EPA” to refer to the Environmental Protection Agency

. 2 Plaintiffs note that the Clean Water Act permit

- shield provision does not protect permit holders from non

- compliance with water

- quality standards promulgated by states. See § 1313 (mandating states to set water

- quality standards for each body of water within a state). But “water quality standards are not themselves directly enforced by the EPA.” Scott v. City of Hammond , 741 F.2d 992, 995 (7th Cir. 1984). Those water

- quality standards are only enforceable by the EPA if they are affirmatively incorporated within the permit. See 33 U.S.C. §§ 1342( k ) , 1319(a)(3). The same holds for citizen suits, which can only be brought to enforc e a state

- promulgated water

- quality standard under § 1313 if the (Continued)4 on this permit but also other discharges “adequately disclosed to the permitting authority.” Piney Run , 268 F.3d at 269. Thus, an operator in compliance with its Clean Water Act permit is shielded f rom liability in EPA and citizen

- suit enforcement actions

. §§ 1319 , 1365

. These permits may be issued by the EPA or the states to which the EPA has delegated its authority

. § 1342(c)(1)

. The EPA delegated its authority to the Commonwealth of Virginia in 1975

. 57 Fed. Reg. 43,734 (Sept. 22, 1992) ; see also J.A. 43 (approving a sub

- delegation to the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy , Division of Mined Land Reclamation )

. Five years after passing the Clean Water Act, Congress pass ed the Surface Mining
Act. The Surface Mining Act , among other things , “establish[es] a nationwide program to protect society and the environment from the adverse effects of surface coal mining operations

. ” 30 U.S.C. § 1202(a) ; see also Consolidation Coa l Co. v. Costle , 604 F.2d 239, 251 (4th Cir. 1979), rev’d on other grounds sub nom. E.P.A. v. Nat ’ l Crushed Stone
Ass’n , 449 U.S. 64 (1980)

. It does so by allowing states to exclusive ly regulate surface coal mining operations within their borders if they satisfy certain conditions

. § 1253(a)

. Virginia satisfied these conditions. 46 Fed. Reg. 61,088 (Dec. 15, 1981). With this

standard is incorporated within the permit. 33 U.S.C. § 1365(a)(1) (citizen suits may be brought against any person alleged to have violate d “an effluent standard or limitation under this ch apter”); id. § 1365(f)(7) (defining “effluent standard or limitation under this chapter”). And “[i]t is clear . . . that if a permit holder discharges pollutants precisely in accordance with the terms of its permit, the permit will ‘shield’ its holder fro m [Clean Water Act] liability.” Piney Run , 268 F.3d at 266; see also § 1342( k )

. So Plaintiffs’ argument on this point does not hold water.5 regulatory authority, Virginia needed to , and did, create a permit s ystem for surface coal mining and reclamation operations that, at a minimum, incorporated the Surface Mining
Act ’s anti

- pollution performance standards. § 1253(a)(4); see Va. Code Ann. § 45.1

- 242(B). Like the Clean Water Act, the Surface Mining Act requi res an operator wish ing
to “engage in or carry out on lands within a State any surface coal mining operations ” to

“ first obtain [] a permit issued by such State .” § 1256(a). But , unlike a Clean Water Act permit, compliance with a Surface Mining Act permit does not itself shield its holder from liability under the Surface Mining Act

. B. The proceedings below In August 2017, Plaintiffs So uthern Appalachian Mountain Stewards , Appalachian Voices, and the Sierra Club sued Red River Coal Company, Inc. They alleg ed that Red River had violated the Clean Water Act , the Surface Mining Act , and, in the alternative, the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act , 42 U.S.C. § 6901 et seq
. (1976 )

. Plaintiffs’ claims stemmed from alleged discharges of pollutants from po int sources at Red River’s

now - inactive North Fox Gap Surface Mine in Virginia. Red River’s activities at the m ine were governed by a combined Clean Water Act and Surface Mining Act permit issued by Virginia

. 3

3 Virginia first granted Red River a combined Clean Water Act and Surface Mining Act permit in 1992. J.A. 162. Th is combined permit was renewed in 1997, J.A. 203, 2002, J.A. 209, and 2006, J.A. 225. In 2015 , Virginia issued a draft renewal permit, S. Appalachian Mountain Stewards v. Red River Coal Co., Inc. , 420 F. Supp. 3d 481, 487

– 88 (W.D. Va. 2019) , but the EPA l odged an objection, J.A. 797. And federal regulations bar a state from issuing a permit over the EPA’s objection. 40 C.F.R. § 122.4(c). The EPA never withdrew its objection, but after several months, Virginia renewed the permit (Continued)6 Red River moved for summary judgment on all claims. And t he district court granted the motion. S

. Appalachian Mountain Stewards , 420 F. Supp. 3d at 498.
T h e district court found the Surface Mining Act claim was barred by that Act’s saving clause. S

. A ppalachian Mountain Stewards , 420 F. Supp. 3d at 498. That clause limits the effect of the A ct : Nothing in the Surface Mining Act “shall be construed as superseding, amending, modifying, or repealing

. . . [the Clean Water Act and ] the State laws enacted pursuant thereto .” 30 U.S.C. § 1292(a)(3). 4 The district court held that where

a Clean Water Act permit precludes liability under the Clean Water Act for certain activities, the Surface Mining Act ’s saving clause bars imposing Surface Mining Act liability for the same actions. S. Appalachian Mountain Stewards , 420 F. Supp. 3d at 498 (“[F]inding that Red River complied with the [ Clean Water Act ] but has violated [ the

anyway. J.A. 233. Regar dless of the effect of Virginia’s 2015 renewal , Red River’s 1992 combined permit remains in force. A state

- issued permit may continue past its expiration date until the renewed permit’s effective date “if State law allows.” 40 C.F.R. § 122.6(d)(1). And Virginia state law allows that continuation under conditions that both parties agree Red River has satisfied. See 9 V A

. A DMIN

. C ODE § 25

- 31

- 70(A). This continued combined permit is “fully effective and enforceable.” Id. § 25

- 31

- 70(B).

4 30 U.S.C. § 1292(a)(3) states: Nothing in this chapter shall be construed as sup erseding, amending, modifying, or repealing the Mining and Minerals Policy Act of 1970 (30 U.S.C. 21a), the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (42 U.S.C. 4321

- 47), or any of the following Acts or with any rule or regulation promulgated thereunder, i ncluding, but not limited to

—

. . . (3) The Federal Water Pollution Control Act (79 Stat. 903), as amended , the State laws enacted pursuant thereto, or other Federal laws relating to preservation of water quality.7 Surface Mining Act ] based on the same discharges would allow [ the Surface Mining Act ] to override the [ Clean Water Act ’s ] permit shield and would thus violate [the saving clause].”). Plaintiffs timely appealed only the district court’s grant of summary judgment to Red River on the Surface Mining Act claim. We have jurisdiction , 28 U.S.C. § 1291 , and review the grant of summary judgment de novo , Calloway v. Lokey , 948 F.3d 194, 201 (4th Cir. 2020)

. II. Discussion Red River’s combined permit requires it to comply with both the Clean Water Act ’s standards and the water

- quality standards Virginia promulgated under the Surface Mining
Act

. See J.A. 27 (citing Va. Code Ann. § 45.1

- 242(B) and 4 Va. Admin. Code § 25

- 130

- 773.17(c)). As they apply here, those standards appear to be effectively the same

. And there is no dispute on appeal that Red River cannot be held liable for any violations of the Clean Water Act standards because of its compliance with its Clean Water Act permit

. But Plaintiffs contend that Red River’s activities at the m ine have violated the Surface Mining
Act ’s standards and are not covered by the Clean Water Act permit shield

. We first discuss how the Clean Water Act’s permit shield interacts with the Surface Mining Act’s saving clause before addressing Plaintiffs’ counter arguments. A. The Surface Mining Act ’s saving clause We agree with the district court

— and thus the Sixth Circuit in Sierra Club v. ICG Hazard, LLC , 781 F.3d 281 , 291

– 92 (6th Cir. 2015)

— that liability may not be imposed under the Surface Mining Act for a specific discharge when the Clean Water Act’s permit8 shield bar s liability under the Clean Water Act for th at same discharge

. See S. Appalachian Mountain Stewards , 420 F. Supp. 3d at 498

. We conclude that although the Clean Water Act and the Surface Mining Act substantive water

- quality standards are

“ not

. . . in consistent,” id. , the saving clause does more than prohibit rules or regulations that are “inconsistent” with the Clean Water Act: it prohibits those that more broadly

“ supersed [e] , amend [] , modify [] , or repeal []” the Clean Water Act , 30 U.S.C. § 1292( a )

. And even if the saving cla use only prohibited inconsistencies between the two statutory regimes , in this case, there is an inconsistency. Even though the substantive standards may not be inconsistent , the scope of liability for violating those standards is.
T he ordinary meaning of the terms in the saving clause makes clear that the clause does more than prevent inconsistent rules and regulations. See In re Surface Min ing Regul

. Litig

. , 627 F.2d 1346, 1366 (D.C. Cir. 1980) (reading the saving clause to broadly prohibit the “altering in any fashion” of the Clean Water Act ). The term “supersede” means

“ obliterate, set aside, annul, replace, make void, inefficacious or useless, repeal. To set aside, render unnecessary, suspend, or stay .” Super sede , Black’s Law Dictionary ( 6 th ed.
1979 )

. “[Black’s Law Dictionary, Merriam Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary, and Webster’s New T wentieth Century Dictionary of the English Language] indicate that the word ‘ supersedes ’ involves replacing one thing with a nother, rather than causing something to be cancelled or invalidated without replacement. ” Bodine v. Cook’s Pest Control Inc. , 830 F.3d 1320, 1326

– 27 (11th Cir. 2016)

. Likewise, the word “modify” means “[t]o alter; to change in incidental or subordinate features; enlarge, extend; amend; limit, reduce .” Modify , Black’s Law Dictionary ( 6th ed. 1979 )

. The term “amend” has a9 similar definition. See Amend , Black’s Law Dictionary ( 6th ed. 1979 ) (“[t]o change , correct, revise ”). 5 Perhaps the Surfa ce Mining Act standards could “replace,” “render unnecessary,” “limit,” “change, correct [or] revise” the Clean Water Act’s permit

- shield provision without being inconsistent with it. For example, if the Surface Mining Act imposed more stringent requireme nts than the Clean Water Act’s corresponding standards, we would not say that the Surface Mining Act standards conflict with the Clean Water Act’s standards, as it would be impossible for an operator to comply with the Surface Mining Act but not the Clean Water Act. But in that situation the Surface Mining Act standards would effectively “ replace ” or “ change ” the Clean Water Act standards by setting forth the actual standard of performance operators must meet. So inconsistency is sufficient, but not
necessary , for the saving clause to operate. That Virginia’s Surface Mining Act substantive standards are cons istent with the Clean Water Act does not, by itself, signify that the saving clause does not apply. 6

5 The term “repeal” requires inconsistenc y but is only one of four verbs in the statute. S

ee Repeal , B LACK ’ S L AW D ICTIONARY (6th ed. 1979) (“abrogation or annulling of a previously existing law by the enactment of a subsequent statute which declares that the former law shall be revoked and abrog ated . . . or which contains provisions so contrary to or irreconcilable with those of the earlier law that only one of the two statutes can stand in force” as distinguished from “a mendment ,” which means “alteration in the law already existing”).

6 Plaintiffs contend that 33 U.S.C. §§ 1311(b)(1)(C) and 1370 support their argument. But reliance on those statutes is misplaced . “Section 1311(b)(1)(C) allows the EPA to issue ‘any more stringent limitation[s]’ if technology

- based effluent limitations cannot ‘meet water quality standards, treatment standards, or schedules of compliance.’” Nat. Ass’n of Mfrs. v. Dep’t of Defense , 138 S. Ct. 617, 629 (2018). But these more (Continued)10 But even if the saving clause only applies when there is some inconsistency between statutes, there is one here, even if not in the substantive provisions. In arguing there is not,
P laintiffs focus on the wrong statutory provisions. Although Virginia’s Surface Mining
Act water

- quality standards are not “inconsistent” with the Clean Water Act , s ee S. Appalachian Mountain Stewards , 420 F. Supp. 3d at 498 , t he relevant “inconsistency” between the statutes is not the substantive water

- quality standards but the existence

— or lack thereof

— of a liability

- shielding permit regime. The Clean Water Act provides an exemption from liability for discharges if the discha rger has a Clean Water Act permit

. That exemption “conflicts” with the Surface Mining Act’s failure to provide a liability shield for the same discharges. That the Surface Mining Act does not have a mechanism to protect operators from liability for activ ities that are otherwise shielded from Clean

stringent limitations “established pursuant to any State law or regulations” must have been promulgated “not later than July 1, 1977.” § 1311(b)(1)(C); see Longview Fibre Co. v. Rasmussen , 980 F.2d 1307, 1312 ( 9th Cir. 1992) (holding that a total maximum daily load established in 1991 cannot fall under § 1311(b) because th e section “reference[d] is in the context of establishing a ‘Timetable for achievement of objectives’” and “requires achievement of the descri bed limitations ‘not later than July 1, 1977’”). The Virginia state

law standards Plaintiffs reference went into effect after that date

. See 4 V A

. A DMIN

. C ODE 25

- 130

- 816.41, .42 (effective date Dec. 15, 1981). So § 1311 does not apply to them. Reliance on these statutes is unavailing for another reason. Section 1311 permits more stringent limitations to be enacted by state law or regulations “under authority preserved by section 1370.” § 1311(b)(1)(C). And § 1370 provides that “[e]xcept as expressly provided in this chapter, nothing in this chapter shall [] preclude or deny the right of any State . . . to adopt or enforce [] any standard or limitation respecting discharges o f pollutants, or [] any requirement respecting control or abatement of polluti on,” unless the state standards are less stringent than the federal standards. But to the extent that the Surface Mining Act’s saving clause “precludes” Virginia’s right to “adopt or enforce” its Surface

- Mining

- Act

- promulgated water

- quality standards, the saving clause is not “in th[at] chapter” so § 1370’s general rule does not apply.11 Water Act liability by a permit effectively “supersede[s],” “modif[ies],” or “amend[s]” the permitting regime set forth in the Clean Water Act. The Supreme Court cases that Plaintiffs cite, Morton v. Mancari , 41 7 U.S. 535 (1974), and Freightliner Corp. v. Myrick , 514 U.S. 280 (1995), do not dictate a different conclusion. Morton states that “absent a clearly expressed congressional intention to the contrary,” statutes capable of co

- existing should be read to do so. 417 U.S. at 551. Plaintiffs argue that Red River could comply with both the Surface Mining Act and the Clean Water Act and should be required to do so. But the existence of the saving clause is “a clearly expressed congressional intention” that Red River’s permit should protect it from liability whe n it compl ies with the provisions of that permit. Id. And Myrick considers the scope of implied conflict preemption, which implicates fed eralism concerns not present in a case addressing the interaction between two federal regulatory schemes. 514 U.S. at
287

– 90. Plaintiffs cite several statements from the federal Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement that it claims anticipa te enforcement of the Surface Mining Act’s performance standards independent of the Clean Water Act’s regulatory regime. But those cited statements do not contemplate the issue we face: the effect of the Surface Mining Act’s saving clause on operators’ a ctions that violate the same substantive standards promulgated under both the Clean Water Act and the Surface Mining Act , where those actions are allowed by virtue of their Clean Water Act permit

.12 One statement, however, is worth considering in greater detail. In 1979, the Office of Surface Mining promulgated rules to implement the federal Surface Mining Act program and addressed its understanding of the saving clause: Congress intended that compliance with the [Surface Mining Act] would not relieve an operator from compliance with other environmental statutes. Congress did not intend that compliance with other environmental statutes should relieve operators from compliance with the Surface Mining Act. The language of Section 702(a) of the [Surface Mining Act], which provides that nothing in the Act can be construed as ‘superseding, amending, modifying, or repealing’ the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act, preserves this balance between the statutes. Nowhere in the legi slative history is there language which indicates that Congress intended this language to reduce the performance standards of the Act to meet the requirements of other statutes. 44 Fed. Reg. 14,902, 15,051 (Mar. 1 3 , 1979). The last sentence of this state ment makes clear the context it addresses : the interaction between substantive performance standards promulgated under the various environmental statutes. In that context, complying with Regulation A promulgated under the Clean Water Act does not exempt an operator from also complying with a substantively different Regulation B under the Surface Mining Act. See id. at 15,050 (noting that the saving clause does not prohibit regulations that fill in a “regulatory gap” (quoting In re Surface Mining Regul

. L itig

. , 456 F. Supp. 1301 (D.D.C. 1978)) ). But that commentary does not address the interaction between the enforcement provisions of two environmental statutes when the substantive standards under both are the

same. 7

7 Even if the Office of Surface Mining’s interpretation of the saving clause answered the question presented, we would not afford it either Chevron or Skidmore deference. The language of the saving clause is unambiguous, even if its application is not straightforward (Continued)13 And so w e agree with the Sixth Circuit that allowing liability to be imposed under the Surface Mining Act for discharges that are exempted by permit from Clean Water Act liability would “modify” or “supersede” the Clean Water Act ’s permit shield in contravention of the saving clause. See ICG Hazards , 781 F.3d at 291

– 92

. Plaintiffs may disagree with the way Virginia chose to enforce the substantive Clean Water Act and Surface Mining Act water

- quality standards, but that disagreem ent does not allow us to find liability under the Surface Mining Act for conduct that is shielded by the Clean Water
Act ’s permit shield

. B. Interaction between the Surface Mining Act ’s saving clause and substantive provisions Plaintiffs argue that even if the saving clause applies, Supreme Court precedent dictates that it cannot be used to override substantive provisions of the Surface Mining Act

. In doing so, Plaintiffs read United States v. Locke , 529 U.S. 89 (2000) , and Geier v.
Amer ican Honda Motor Co., Inc. , 529 U.S. 861 (2000) , as establishing both that courts should “decline to give broad effect to saving clauses where doing so would upset the careful regulatory scheme established by federal law,” Locke , 529 U.S. at 106

– 07, and that courts should reject interpretations of savi ng clauses that “permit[] the law to defeat its own objectives” or “destroy itself,” Geier , 529 U.S. at 872 (quoting Am. Tel. & Tel. Co. v.
Cent. Off. Tel., Inc. , 524 U.S. 214, 228 (1998) )

. But t his argument misconstrues those precedents and over

- dramati zes the consequences of adopting Red River’s position.

here, and no one has argued otherwise. See Chevron v. Nat

. Res

. Def. Council , 467 U.S. 837, 842

– 43 (1984); Skidmore v. Swift & Co. , 323 U.S. 134, 140 (1944).14 Both Geier and Locke addressed saving provisions in the context of federal preemption, which involves complex questions of federalism not present when discussing the interplay between two federal regul atory regimes. In the federalism context, it makes sense to interpret saving clauses narrowly, because the consequence of a broad interpretation is more federal interference in matters that the state s may validly regulate. Plaintiffs do not persuasively explain why th e se cases are relevant in this context despite their federalism focus.
But even if those cases espouse principles relevant in this context, both holdings
were statute

- specific and thus are not broadly generalizable

. T he Locke Court relied on principles of statutory interpretation to determine that a federal saving clause located within the same chapter as the liability rules for oil spills did not apply to preempt state regulations governing a different topic

— the operation and design of oil tankers. 529 U.S. at 105

– 06. Likewise, Geier addressed whether traditional principles of conflict preemption continued to apply despite a saving clause. In doing so, the Court determined that an interpretation of the saving clause there t hat allowed a conflict not permitted by federal conflict

preemption principles would allow the federal law “to defeat its own objectives” or “destroy itself.” 5 29 U.S. at 872 (quoting Am. Tel. & Tel. Co. , 524 U.S. at 228). N either case can reasonably be read to hold that a substantive provision of a statute always supersedes a saving clause when the two conflict , and neither suggests that result here

. 8

8 Both parties also try to marshal Shaw v. Delta Air Lines, Inc. , 463 U.S. 85 (1983), to support their arguments. Shaw discussed the scope of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’ s saving clause, which states that its substantive provisions “ shall not ‘be (Continued)15 Plaintiffs narrow this argument in their reply brief. There, they contend that saving clauses “should b e interpreted narrowly to avoid doing damage to the substantive provisions of the act.” Plaintiffs

- Appellants’ Reply Br. 13. They argue that adopting Red River’s interpretation of the saving clause would “fundamentally alter[] two substantive provisions of the [ Surface Mining Act ] : the requirement that all mine operators comply with the performance standards (30 U.S.C. § 1265) and the right of citizens to enforce that requirement against any operator (30 U.S.C. § 1270).” Id. at 24. This argument is also flawed

. Red River’s interpre tation of the saving clause would not “defeat” the “objectives” of, “destroy,” or fundamentally alter the Surface Mining Act for it does not solely regulate water pollution. Rather, it was enacted to more broadly “protect society and the environment from the adverse effects of surface coal mining operations.” 30 U.S.C. § 1202(a). To implement that broad mandate, the Surface Mining
Act authorizes the regulation of all aspects of surface coal mining, including resource maximization, land restoration, erosi on prevention, vegetation protection, waste disposal, land stability, and water

- pollution prevention. § 1265(b). So the Surface Mining Act ’s

non - hydrologic performance standards continue to app ly when they do not supersede, amend, modify, or repeal any o ther statutes listed in the saving clause. T his problem only

construed to alter, amend, modify, invalidate, impair, or supersede any law of the United States.’” Id. at 100

– 01. The Court considered whether that clause could save a New York state l aw from preemption. Id. In doing so, it determined that “the combination of Congress’ enactment of an all

- inclusive pre

- emption provision and its enumeration of narrow, specific exceptions to that provision ma[d]e [them] reluctant to expand § 514(d) into a more general saving clause.” Id. at 104. This unique combination of preemption and statute

- specific concerns makes it difficult for this case to neatly fit within either party’s argument.16 arises for the Surface Mining Act regulations that govern the same areas as the Clean Water
Act

. Even if the Surface Mining Act was enacted because “Congress recognized that the [ Clean Water Act ] is inadequate to eliminate pollution from inactive mines,” Consolidation Coal Co. , 604 F.2d at 251, reading the saving clause to prevent Surface Mining Act liability for pollutant discharges shielded from Clean Water Act liability by a permit leaves the Surface Mining Act with plenty of room to regulate surface coal mining operations without being subject to the saving clause. Citizens can still enforce the Surface Mining Act ’s rules and regulations, and mine operators must still meet the Surface Mining Act ’s standards in the many other contexts the Act regulates. Plaintiffs’ argument to the contrary is an exaggerated parade

- of

- horribles that strays from the rest of the Surface Mining Act ’s statutory scheme

.

* * * We are not unsympathetic to concerns about the purity of the water that Virginians rely on every day. But we must follow the text of the statute that was democratically passed by Congress. P ermit ting liability under the Surface Mining Act for pollutant discharges that are otherwise exempted from liability under a Clean Water Act permit would
contravene the text of the saving clause by allowing the Surface Mining Act to “supersede,” “modify,” or “amend” the Clean Water Act ’s permi tting regime. See ICG Hazards , 781 F.3d at 291. For that reason, the district court’s grant of summary judgment to Red River

on the Surface Mining Act claim is
AFFIRMED.