The court held that a district court erred in dismissing environmental groups' suit challenging the issuance of a permit to construct a power plant near Yellowstone National Park for lack of standing. The Montana Department of Environmental Quality issued the permit after the U.S. Department of the ...

The court held that a Native American tribe is ineligible for funding under the mandatory contracting provisions of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (ISDEAA) to implement a salmon and steelhead restoration project in the Trinity River Basin. The restoration projects are des...

The court affirmed the dismissal of a home builder association's claims that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) violated the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) in its promulgation of survey protocols to detect the endangered quino checkerspot butterfly in s...

A court held that a city cannot disregard the mitigating conditions it placed on the demolition of certain buildings in its approval of a redevelopment project without conducting a supplemental California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) review. The city claimed that the demolition at issue was not ...

The court holds that a lower court erred in preliminarily enjoining a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) rule that permits the resumption of the importation of Canadian cattle to the United States. The importation of Canadian cattle had temporarily been barred due to fears of Bovine Spongiform En...

The court holds that the Tucker Act's statute of limitations does not bar a development company's claim that U.S. Marine Corps munitions-handling operations at Blount Island, Florida, resulted in a temporary taking of the company's property without just compensation. The statute of limitations began...

The court upholds an individual's conviction for violating the Delaware Wetlands Act when he built an erosion barrier on wetlands on his waterfront property without a permit. The statute is not overly broad because it does not unnecessarily restrict his constitutional right to access navigable water...

A court holds that a county must set aside its approvals for a development project. The project is inconsistent with the county's general plan because it will cause an impermissible increase in traffic. In addition, the environmental impact report for the project must be set aside. It uses an improp...

The court holds that the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) §309, which preempts a state's statute of limitations if it provides a commencement date earlier than the federal commencement date, does not preempt Texas' 15-year statute of repose in a che...

The court holds that landowners residing within various irrigation districts in central Arizona may not seek declaratory relief to prevent modification of existing irrigation contracts between the Central Arizona Water Conservation District and the United States. The landowners are merely incidental...