What it did not do, explicitly, was grant Tesla the right to use public or private property for wastewater conveyance. The drainage district that manages the ditch the pipe was discharging into was never notified that the permit existed. Its workers found out the way drainage district workers in any small Texas county find out about things: by walking the ditch and seeing something new.

If the discharge permit is a good thing or a bad thing for the environment is another topic. But right now this seems to be the only legal issue in the room, right?

At least one that implicates Tesla. The people that permitted them to discharge and didn’t include relevant pollutant values in said discharge are having a bad day enjoying their private yacht.