The court grants in part and denies in part numerous petitions for review of a series of Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) orders relating to refunds stemming from the California energy crisis in 2000 and 2001. All of the transactions at issue that occurred within the California Power Exch...

The court holds that a lower court improperly dismissed as unripe environmental groups’ claims that the U.S. Forest Service violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) when it amended certain forest plans in the southern United States. The lower court erred in dismissing the case bec...

A district court issues a preliminary ruling that temporarily blocks the Bureau of Land Managment's (BLM's) plans to lease approximately 1.7 million acres within the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska for oil exploration. The lease concerns vast areas of sensitive wetlands surrounding Lake Teshekp...

A California appellate court holds that the state water board abuses its discretion in imposing certain restrictions on an irrigation district's permit to appropriate water within the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta watershed but not on appropriators whose rights are junior to those of the irrigator. T...

A California appellate court upholds a city's and county's certification of a 2003 habitat conservation plan and implementation agreement for threatened hawks and snakes in the Natamos Basin, as well as the state wildlife department's plan for issuing incidental take permits in the area, under the C...

The court dismisses petitions for review of two Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) orders concerning the calculation of settlement statements relating to the California energy crisis. The California Independent System Operator (Cal-ISO) sought review of a FERC order in which it declined Cal...

The court upholds several off-road vehicle (ORV) restrictions imposed by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) in certain parts of Utah. BLM complied with the Federal Land Policy and Management Act and the National Environmental Policy Act when it enacted the restrictions, BLM's decision to close vari...

A district court preliminarily enjoined a port from dredging two areas of the San Joaquin River's Deep Water Ship Channel in Stockton, California. Environmental groups argued that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' dredge and fill permit authorizing the two dredging activities violated the National E...

A district court enjoined the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) from leasing approximately 1.7 million acres within the National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska for oil exploration. The lease concerns vast areas of sensitive wetlands surrounding Lake Teshekpuk that are protected under the National Petrole...

The court held that the U.S. Army violated the National Environmental Policy Act in connection with its proposal to transform the 2nd Brigade into a quick-response unit in Hawaii. The local groups challenging the proposal did not waive their right to challenge the sufficiency of the Army's considera...