R. Timothy McCrum is a Partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Crowell & Moring LLP. Mr. McCrum specializes in natural resources and environmental law, and he is a practice group leader in the firm's Environment & Natural Resources Group. With Crowell & Moring since 1986, he has experience with a wide variety of issues involving litigation, legislation, rulemaking, negotiation, and counseling.
Mr. McCrum has litigated cases and counseled companies in matters arising under a wide variety of environmental and natural resource laws including the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Water Act, CERCLA, the Endangered Species Act, the Federal Land Policy and Management Act, the General Mining Laws, and the federal mineral leasing laws. He has represented companies in administrative permitting processes and litigation involving controversial projects ranging from gold mines to oil and gas exploration and production facilities. His representation of clients in litigation includes:
· BedRoc Limited, LLC, et al. v. United States, 541 U.S. 176, 124 S. Ct. 1587 (2004), arguing before the Supreme Court on behalf of the Petitioners in a long-running controversy over whether private landowners owned the sand and gravel located on property granted under the Pittman Underground Water Act of 1919, where Congress reserved "valuable minerals" for the United States. The Interior Board of Land Appeals, the federal district court in Nevada, and the Ninth Circuit had ruled in favor of the government. The Supreme Court reversed, with six justices agreeing with BedRoc that Congress did not intend to reserve the sand and gravel of Nevada when it enacted the Pittman Act in 1919.
· Minard Run Oil Co. et al. v. U.S. Forest Service, et al., 2009 U.S. Dist. Lexis 116520 (W.D. Pa. Dec. 15, 2009), aff'd ___ F.3d ___ 2011 WL 4389220 (3d Cir. Sept. 20, 2011), as lead counsel representing the Pennsylvania Independent Oil & Gas Association challenging an April 9, 2009 U.S. Forest Service Settlement Agreement with the Sierra Club and a contemporaneous Forest Service drilling ban directive requiring NEPA compliance in the form of a Forest-wide EIS before the Forest Service could process oil and gas well drilling proposals on private oil and gas estates within the 500,000-acre Allegheny National Forest in the Marcellus Shale region. The appellate court found that substantial economic injuries and interference with real property rights constituted the irreparable injury needed for an injunction, and further, stating that: "granting the injunction would vindicate the public's interests in aiding the local economy," protect "the property rights of mineral rights owners," and ensure "public participation in agency rulemaking as required by the APA." Following a three-day evidentiary hearing, the district court granted a preliminary injunction barring implementation of the Settlement Agreement and drilling ban
· Nat'l Wildlife Fed'n v. Mont. Dep't of Envtl. Quality, Montana Fifth Judicial Dist. Ct., Jefferson County, No. DV-08-10896 (July 21, 2011), representing Barrick Gold's Golden Sunlight Mine: the court held that the Montana Constitution does not require costly backfilling of an open pit gold mine, where a supplemental EIS showed environmental harm from acid-rock drainage would result, ending longstanding litigation. The court reasoned that as a constitutionally-protected right, a clean and healthful environment outweighed any aesthetic values, stating: "Health is more important than beauty." The court further reasoned that it had no authority to elevate one visual perspective over another, stating: "Among permanently located viewers, there may be those who are delighted at the view as they consider the benefits they and their family members have obtained from employment, contribution to the tax base, etc."
· The General Electric Company and United Nuclear Corporation v. United States of America, U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs, U.S. Department of Energy, and The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, No. 1:10-CV-00404-MCA-RHS(D.New Mexico, Sept. 6, 2011) (Order approving Partial Consent Decree and Judgment), representing GE and UNC in a CERCLA cost recovery and contribution claims against the U.S. arising from the former uranium mine known as the Northeast Church Rock Mine in northern New Mexico. The mine was operated on land owned by the U.S. from the 1960s through the early 1980s. The CERCLA claims sought to hold the U.S. liable as a facility owner and arranger of waste disposal, given that the U.S. expressly authorized uranium mining on this site in 1959 in accordance with a national program coordinated by the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission under the Atomic Energy Act to create and expand a domestic uranium mining industry in the U.S. The partial consent decree approved by the court allocated 30 to 33% of the CERCLA liabilities to the U.S. government.
· Mineral Policy Center v. Norton, 292 F. Supp.2d 30 (D.D.C. 2003), representing the National Mining Association as an intervenor successfully defending against challenges to the U.S. Interior Department hardrock mining regulations involving issues under NEPA and federal public land statutes. The Interior regulations at issue rescinded a controversial discretionary "mine veto" authrotiy, and they allowed mineral exploration activities disturbing up to five acres of land to proceed without site-specific NEPA reviews.
· Columbia Gas Co. v. Consolidation Coal Co. et al., No. 99-2071 (W.D. Pa.), representing Consol in action to bar longwall mining from proceeding through underground gas storage field. Following a mini trial and court-sponsored mediation in 2001, a settlement was reached to allow the planned mining to proceed.
· Mobil Oil Corp. v. United States, No. 99-1467-A (E.D. Va.), representing Mobil against the U.S. in a CERCLA contribution action involving the Stibnite Mine Site in Idaho where gold, antimony and tungsten were mined from the 1930s through the 1990s. Following discovery and summary judgment motions, the parties reached a settlement, entered August 15, 2000, to provide Mobil with a 100 percent release of liability for future response costs, and the U.S. agreed to pay Mobil $1.55 million for past response costs.
· National Wildlife Federation v. Westphal, 116 F.Supp.2d 49 (D.D.C. 2000), defending two Mississippi Levee Boards and 50 local government entities as intervenors in successfully opposing a suit by environmental groups under NEPA and other laws against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which sought to invalidate a major flood control project for the Mississippi Delta.
· Secretary of Labor v. Keystone Coal Mining Corporation, 151 F.3d 1096 (D.C. Cir. 1998), upholding rejection of the enforcement position of Secretary of Labor (Mine Safety & Health Administration) in longstanding coal dust tampering litigation involving hundreds of coal mining companies, leading to the vacation of more than 3,000 tampering citations.
· Amigos Bravos v. Molycorp, Inc., 1998 WL 792159 (10th Cir. Nov.13, 1998), obtaining dismissal of Clean Water Act citizen suit involving a major New Mexico molybdenum mine.
· United States ex. rel. North Santiam Watershed Council, et al. v. Kinross Gold, Inc., et al., 1998 WL 118176 (N.D. Cal. Mar. 9, 1998), successfully defending eighteen mining companies against qui tam claims that they had fraudulently obtained mineral rights on federal lands by failing to disclose their alleged foreign ownership in mining claim records with the Interior Department.
· Edwards v. United States and Independence Mining Co., 1998 WL 22029 (9th Cir. Jan.15, 1998), obtaining dismissal of citizen challenge under NEPA and other laws to an Interior Department land exchange at a major Nevada gold mine.
From 1984 to 1986, Mr. McCrum served as Attorney-Advisor with the Energy and Resources Division of the Solicitor's Office, U.S. Department of the Interior. He has served as the Chair of the Mining Committee of the American Bar Association's Section of Environment, Energy and Resources Law (1997-99), and a Trustee of the Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation (2000-03). In 2000 he served as a member of the Bush-Cheney Transition, Interior Advisory Committee. He is listed in Who's Who in American Law, Who's Who in America, and Best Lawyers in America (2000 to 2011). Mr. McCrum holds a B.A. degree in geology from Franklin & Marshall College (1980), and a J.D. degree from Lewis and Clark School of Law (1983). He is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia, several U.S. Courts of Appeals, and the U.S. Supreme Court.
Publications
· "Oil and Gas Operations on Public Lands in the Marcellus Shale Region," Energy & Mineral Law Institute, Vol. 32 (publication pending) (2011). Co-authors: R. Timothy McCrum, Timothy Miller and Providence Spina.
· "PIOGA Victory in the ANF!," The PIOGA Press, Issue 18 (October 2011). Author: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "When Sacred Sites Are Deemed More Precious Than Gold: The Glamis Gold Ltd. Claim For Compensation Under NAFTA," Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Institute, Vol. 58, Ch. 27 (2008). Co-Authors: Alan W.H. Gourley, R. Timothy McCrum, David P. Ross, and Sobia Haque.
· "The Resurgence of the U.S. Mining Industry in 2005 and how Our Legal System can Help it Flourish," Crowell & Moring Mining Law Monitor, Vol. 22, Issue 1 (Spring 2005). Author: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "U.S. Supreme Court Rules in Bedroc v. United States: Ownership of Western Desert Sand and Gravel Shifts to Private Sector," Crowell & Moring Mining Law Monitor, Vol. 21, Issue 1 (Spring 2004). Author: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "Bill to Protect Sacred Native American Federal Lands Would Jeopardize Mining and Other Land-Development Activities," Crowell & Moring Mining Law Monitor (Fall 2002). Author: Tim McCrum.
· "RCRA Hazardous Wastes Handbook," Government Institutes, 12th Ed. (2001). Co-Authors: Ridgway M. Hall, Jr., Robert C. Davis, Jr., Richard E. Schwartz, Nancy S. Bryson and R. Timothy McCrum.
· "The New BLM 3809 Regulations: Background, Overview and Status," Rocky Mt. Mineral Law Foundation, Mineral Law Series, Vol. 2001, No. 1 (2001). Co-Authors: R. Timothy McCrum and Edward M. Green.
· "Stibnite Mine Settlement Demonstrates Ability of Private Sector to Shift Superfund Liabilities to the U.S. Government at Western Mine Sites," ABA's Section of Environment, Energy & Resources Mining Committee Newsletter, Vol. 2, No. 1 (November 2000). Author: E. Timothy McCrum.
· "National Academy Of Sciences Issues Report Card On Hardrock Mining," Crowell & Moring Mining Law Monitor (October 1999). Author: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "Courts Hold Government Liable for Cleanup Costs," The National Law Journal, Vol. 21, No. 49 (August 2, 1999). Author: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "Potentially Responsible Parties May Pursue Superfund Liability Claims Against U.S. Entities," The National Law Journal (August 1999). Author: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "The Emerging Judicial Recognition Of Government Liability Under Superfund," Toxic Torts & Environmental Litigation Newsletter (November 1998). Author: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "The AWC Victory - Lessons for the Future," Crowell & Moring Mining Law Monitor (October 1998). Co-Author: Timothy M. Biddle and R. Timothy McCrum.
· "Petition to Interior Secretary in 'Comparative Value' Case Threatens Longstanding Mining Claim Validity Doctrine Under The 1872 Mining Law," Crowell & Moring Mining Law Monitor (July 1998). Author: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "Update on Interior and Agriculture Departments' Initiatives on Hardrock Mining," (1997). Co-Authors: Edward M. Green, R. Timothy McCrum and Steven P. Quarles.
· "The Superfund Manual," Government Institutes, 6th Ed. (1997). Co-Authors: Ridgway M. Hall Jr., Richard E. Schwartz, Robert C. Davis, Jr., Nancy S. Bryson and R. Timothy McCrum.
· "The Application of NEPA to the Public Land Management Agencies: Legal and Practical Considerations," Rocky Mt. Mineral Law Foundation, Mineral Law Series, Vol. 1997, No. 6 (1997). Author: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "The Changing Nature of the Right to a Mineral Patent," Rocky Mt. Mineral Law Institute, Vol. 42 (1996). Author: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "The Natural Resources Law Manual," ABA (1995). Co-Author: R. Timothy McCrum.
Alerts & Newsletters
· "Third Circuit Affirms Injunctive Relief to Resource Producers in Marcellus Shale Region of Pennsylvania, Blocking Harmful NEPA Settlement That Imposed U.S. Forest Service Drilling Ban in 500,000-acre Allegheny National Forest," Environment & Natural Resources Law Alert (September 26, 2011). Contacts: R. Timothy McCrum, J. Michael Klise, Daniel W. Wolff, Thomas R. Lundquist, Providence Spina.
· "State of New York Files Suit Against Federal Agencies Seeking Environmental Review of Natural Gas Development in the Delaware River Basin," Environment & Natural Resources Law Alert (June 2, 2011). Contacts: R. Timothy McCrum, Kirsten L. Nathanson, Daniel W. Wolff, Providence Spina.
· "Mining Law Monitor - Volume 26, Issue 1 - (Spring 2011)," Mining Law Monitor (June 1, 2011). Contacts: J. Michael Klise, R. Timothy McCrum.
· "Venezuela Takes Further Steps Against International Mining and Other Natural Resource Companies," Environment & Natural Resources Law Alert (May 20, 2008). Contacts: Alan W. H. Gourley, R. Timothy McCrum.
· "Controversy Over Sage-Grouse Threatens Multiple Use Development Across 11 Western States," Environment & Natural Resources Law Alert (January 16, 2008). Contacts: Steven P. Quarles, R. Timothy McCrum, Thomas R. Lundquist.
Speaking Engagements
· "Mining Regulatory Risks and Opportunities in the US Political Climate of 2012," Northwest Mining Association 2011 Annual Convention (December 1, 2011). Speaker: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "Mining and Regulatory Risks and Opportunities in the US," CRU and Fraser Institute Mining Business Risks Summit 2011, Toronto, Canada (October 26, 2011). Speaker: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "Update on Allegheny Forest Litigation and Broader Issues With Oil and gas Operations in Marcellus Shale Region National Forests," Pennsylvania Independent Oil and Gas Association 2011 Spring Meeting, Seven Springs Mt. Resort, Pennsylvania (May 24-26, 2011). Speaker: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "Oil and Gas Operations on Public Lands in the Marcellus Shale Region," 32nd Annual Institute, Energy & Mineral Law Foundation, Nemacolin Resort, Pennsylvania (paper publication pending) (May 15-17, 2011). Speaker: R. Timothy McCrum.
· "Roundtable on Cross-Cutting issues on Energy & Natural Resources Development," University of Dundee, Centre for Energy & Mineral Law and Policy, Old Course Inn, St. Andrews, Scotland (October 15, 2009). Moderator: R. Timothy McCrum.