A district court held that the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) violated NEPA in its decision to deregulate a variety of genetically engineered sugar beets. Sugar beets are pollinated by both wind and insects, and scientists have documented that sugar beet pollen can disperse up to...

A district court held that the U.S. Forest Service's EIS addressing the land management plans for four national forests in southern California was issued in violation of NEPA and the National Forest Management Act (NFMA). The court rejected many of the plaintiffs' challenges. Nevertheless, the Fores...

The First Circuit upheld the dismissal of a Native American tribe's claim challenging the Bureau of Indian Affair's (BIA's) decision to allow a plot of tribal land to be leased for the construction and operation of a liquefied natural gas facility. The tribe argued that the BIA's decision violated t...

The Tenth Circuit held that a proposed intervener may not establish standing, and thus federal court jurisdiction over its motion to intervene, by "piggybacking" on the standing of an existing party to a lawsuit over which the district court has retained jurisdiction but within which there is no cur...

The Ninth Circuit held that animal rights organizations lacked standing to challenge a USDA notice stating that "there is no specific federal humane handling and slaughter statute for poultry." The lower court entered summary judgment in favor of the USDA, holding that while the plain meaning of the...

The Ninth Circuit affirmed in part and reversed in part a lower court decision denying Native American tribes' motion to preliminarily enjoin BLM's approval of a large gold mining project on Mt. Tenabo, Nevada, which has religious significance for the tribes. The tribes failed to satisfy their burde...

The Third Circuit affirmed a lower court decision denying a mining company's motion to expand a preliminary injunction and enjoin asbestos claims against the state of Montana arising from the company's mining operations. The company filed for Chapter 11 under the Bankruptcy Code in 2001. The same da...

The Second Circuit denied a petition for review challenging the NRC's decision not to reverse its 1996 EIS finding that spent fuel pools at nuclear power plants do not create a significant environmental impact within the meaning of NEPA. Because the NRC has given due consideration to the relevant st...

A district court remanded to state court a city's CWA and state law claims against another city challenging its imposition of a 25% surcharge on wastewater treatment services. The plaintiff city seeks a declaration that the surcharge violates the CWA. Although the plaintiff city referred to the fede...

The Ninth Circuit affirmed a corporate officer’s conviction under RCRA relating to the illegal storage of hazardous waste. The officer argued that the United States could charge and obtain a conviction against the corporation or him, but not both. The court disagreed. Both the corporation and ...