The court rules that the Alaska Railroad's herbicide spraying program for vegetation maintenance on railroad rights-of-way is subject to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). The railroad had implemented a vegetation maintenance program in keeping with the Federal Railroad Safety Act regulat...

In a suit by the United States to enjoin unauthorized filling of a wetland, the court dismisses defendants' counterclaim on grounds that it is within the exclusive jurisdiction of the Court of Claims. The Tucker Act provides that claims against the United States for more than $10,000 are to be decid...

The court enjoins Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) enforcement of new discharger rules against movable offshore oil drilling rigs and upholds signatory and certification regulations implementing the national pollutant discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit program under the Federal Water P...

The district court denies motions to dismiss claims brought by federal, state, and local governments under §7003 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) and §§106(a) and 107 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) against the prior owner ...

In an action to assess a civil penalty and to recover oil spill cleanup costs under §311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA), the court rules that the government's causes of action were brought within the applicable statutes of limitations. Because §311 of the FWPCA does not specify...

The Ninth Circuit rules that the U.S. Forest Service's decision not to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) prior to granting a special use permit for the reconstruction and use of a road through the Angeles National Forest violates the National Environmental Policy Act. The road passes d...

The Ninth Circuit upholds appellants' convictions for offering to sell and selling eagles in violation of the Migratory Bird Treaty Act (MBTA). The court rules that the government properly elected to prosecute appellants under the MBTA rather than under the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, a mo...

The court rules that a publicly disclosed environmental impact statement (EIS) is not required for a naval weapons storage facility which might house nuclear weapons. For national security reasons, the Navy may neither admit nor deny that it is storing or planning to store nuclear weapons at the fac...

The district court denies the Department of the Interior's motion for reconsideration of its decision, 12 ELR 20197, upholding the constitutionality of §204(e) of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA). Under §204(e), a committee of either house of Congress may request the Secretary to...

The court rules that the Tennessee Valley Authority's (TVA's) decision to rebuild a hydroelectric power generating facility and to allow releases of water to preserve recreational uses of the river only if outside funding becomes available was consistent with the National Environmental Policy Act (N...