The court holds that a challenge by the state of Nebraska to the siting of a regional low-level radioactive waste storage facility in Boyd County, Nebraska, is barred by a regional compact's time limits on suits and the doctrines of estoppel and laches. Ruling on a motion for summary judgment by the...

The court holds that the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act (BGEPA) does not violate the Free Exercise or Establishment Clauses of the U.S. Constitution and, therefore, affirmed an individual's conviction for possessing eagle feathers without a permit. The BGEPA prohibits the taking or possession ...

The court holds that the take provision of the Endangered Species Act (ESA), as applied to landowners, does not violate the U.S. Commerce Clause. After purchasing property, the landowners sought to develop it, but were prevented from doing so because of the restrictions placed on the land under the ...

The court holds that the Endangered Species Act's (ESA's) application to private lands in order to protect an endangered species that lives entirely within one state does not violate the U.S. Commerce Clause. The court first holds that the regulated activity in question—construction of a housing d...

The court affirms the dismissal of a domestic utility company's allegation that the Energy Policy Act of 1992 (EPACT) unconstitutionally imposed monetary assessments on domestic utilities for the remediation of environmentally contaminated U.S. uranium processing facilities. Beginning in the 1960s, ...

The court holds that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) acted in an arbitrary and capricious manner by issuing incidental take statements imposing terms and conditions on grazing permits sought by a cattle growers' association where there was either no evidence that the endangered species exis...

The court affirms a district court decision requiring the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) and to issue a critical habitat designation for the Rio Grande Silvery Minnow within 120 days. In 1994, the minnow was listed as an endangered species. FW...

The court holds that the federal government failed to show how limiting permits for eagle feathers only to members of federally recognized tribes is the least restrictive means of advancing the government's interests in preserving eagle populations and protecting Native American culture. An individu...

The court holds that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) failed to satisfy the Atlantic Coastal Fisheries Management Act's (Atlantic Coastal Act's) consultation requirement before promulgating a final rule governing lobster fishing in the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off the U.S. Atlantic ...

The court holds that application of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) to a commercial housing development that threatened the continued existence of the arroyo southwestern toad, an endangered species, was a constitutional exercise of federal authority under the U.S. Commerce Clause. The court previo...