Notes of Decisions
Jurisdiction
Absent waiver, the Eleventh Amendment bars plaintiffs’ suit against the Department of Environmental Protection in Federal court. Although the Delaware River Basin Compact (DRBC) permits suits against the DRBC in Federal court, there is no language in the Compact indicating that Pennsylvania waived its Eleventh Amendment immunity by participating in the Compact. Oley Township v. Delaware River Basin Commission, 906 F. Supp. 284, (E. D. Pa. 1995).
Parties
Because it is the Department of Environmental Resources who is required to determine what leachate treatment and what erosion and sedimentation controls are mandated by law, if the court should determine that different standards are required, the Department, if not a party, would not be required to comply with the court’s determination, and utter confusion would result. Without the Department as a party, there could be a duplication of the requirement to defend and a confusing and incomplete disposition of the case; therefore, the Department should be a party to this proceeding. Szarko v. Delaware County Solid Waste Authority, 24 D&C 4th 428 (1995).
The Department of Environmental Resources is not a necessary or indispensable party to the trespass action because the Department cannot authorize the solid waste agency to trespass upon plaintiffs’ land or immunize the agency from liability. Szarko v. Delaware County Solid Waste Authority, 24 D & C 4th 428 (1995).
