The Ninth Circuit held unripe nonprofit groups' action to obtain a declaration that a U.S. Department of Energy order that outlines the management of defense radioactive waste is invalid. Delayed review will not cause any real cognizable hardship, but intervention at this point would unduly interfer...

The Ninth Circuit upheld an individual's misdemeanor conviction for using National Forest System land in a gathering of over 75 other persons without a special-use permit. The conviction did not violate his First Amendment rights because the group-use permit scheme leaves open ample alternatives for...

A California appellate court upheld the dismissal of an environmental group's suit challenging the state forest department's approval of six timber harvest plans. The department proceeded in the manner required by law in determining the geographic assessment area, and substantial evidence supports t...

The First Circuit upheld the dismissal of an oil company's lawsuit seeking to enjoin the Puerto Rico Environmental Quality Board from imposing a fine against it for releasing fuel from a leaking underground storage tank system into the environment. Because the proceedings are ongoing before the boar...

A California appellate court held that under the state constitution and the state Water Code, an application for a permit to impound water in a reservoir must state, and the Water Board must determine, that an actual, intended beneficial use, in estimated amounts, will be made of the impounded water...

A California appellate court dismissed a preservation group's suit to enjoin a quarry project under a county initiative that requires new quarries outside an urban zone to be sanctioned by voters. The initiative does not apply to preexisting legal land uses and rights to development. Here, the count...

A California appellate court upheld the dismissal of a campground's suit against a reclamation district after intentional levee cuts by the district released floodwater onto the campground property. The district is entitled to immunity under the California Emergency Services Act and under the police...

A California appellate court held that a landfill is an "improvement" within the meaning of the 10-year statute of repose provided by the California Code of Civil Procedure §337.15. The case arose after the current owners of the landfill who turned it into a nursery noticed severe subsidence on...

New York's highest court held that review under the State Environmental Quality Review Act (SEQRA) is required before a municipality adopts a resolution approving the annexation of real property from an adjacent municipality, but the extent of the environmental assessment (EA) is dependent on the sp...

A California appellate court upheld a comprehensive municipal storm sewer permit governing 19 local public entities. A building association argued that water quality standards provisions in the permit require strict compliance with state water quality standards beyond what is "practicable" and there...