C.A. 4th;
D070562

The Fourth Appellate District affirmed a judgment. The court held that a water district failed to show that pollutants in the shallow soil at an industrial site caused groundwater contamination.

The Orange County Water District sued MAG Aerospace Industries, Inc. and others to recover the district's past and future costs of investigating and remediating groundwater contamination. The district asserted statutory claims for damages under the Carpenter-Presley-Tanner Hazardous Substances Account Act (HSAA) and the Orange County Water District Act (OCWD Act) and for declaratory relief. The district also asserted common law claims for negligence, nuisance, and trespass. The court bifurcated trial on the district's claims, with an initial bench trial on the district's equitable claims under the HSAA, the OCWD Act, and for declaratory relief, with a subsequent jury trial on the district's legal claims.