The court holds that a prevailing logging company was not entitled to attorney fees in a lawsuit brought by an environmental group under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The court first holds that it will only allow attorney fees to a prevailing defendant if the plaintiff's action was frivolous. Th...

The court holds that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) practice of overfiling in those states where it has authorized state enforcement of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) oversteps the Agency's authority under the Act. EPA initiated a RCRA enforcement action agains...

The court holds that it has subject matter jurisdiction over an environmental group's Clean Air Act (CAA) citizen suit that alleged emission and reporting violations at a refinery. The court first holds that under CAA §304, the group provided the refinery with adequate notice of the violation befor...

The court holds that the U.S. Forest Service complied with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) when it issued a special use permit to a helicopter-guided skiing company in Chugach National Forest in Alaska without conducting an environmental assessment (EA) or an environmental impact statem...

The court upholds two Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) orders that refused on standing grounds a radioactive waste disposal facility's request for hearing and intervention in the licensing proceedings of two competitor disposal facilities. The court first holds that the NRC correctly stated that ...

The court holds that it lacks jurisdiction to review a mining corporation's Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) claims arising from a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) document addressing whether certain mining processes produced hazardous waste. The document discussed the rare ea...

The court holds that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) violated the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by failing to prepare a biological opinion (BO) that properly addressed how the North Pacific fishery management plans (FMPs) for the groundfish fisheries in the Bering Sea and Gulf of Alaska ...

The court holds that environmental groups have standing to bring a Clean Air Act (CAA) action against a Texas oil refinery for violating hydrogen and sulfur dioxide emission standards and further holds that a state environmental agency's administrative action against the refinery for the same violat...

The court holds that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) did not comply with the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (Magnuson-Stevens Act) or its regulations when it promulgated the 1999 summer flounder fishing quota. The court first holds that the summer flounder fish...

The court denies environmental groups' motion to reopen a previous action and dismisses the groups' current action against the federal government in which the groups allege that the U.S. Navy violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), the Endangered Species Act (ESA), and the Marine Mamm...