The court holds that the Secretary of the Interior improperly deleted split-estate lands from classification as Wilderness Study Areas (WSAs) under §603 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act (FLPMA) and must manage permanently deleted holdings of less than 5,000 acres under an Interim Manag...

The court upholds the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) effluent limitations for the canmaking industry, which require the removal of total toxic organics (TTO) and toxic metals, against a number of challenges to EPA's data collection and selection and its consideration of cost factors. The ...

The court rules that a provision in a sewage treatment contract providing for industrial cost recovery (ICR) charges pursuant to a requirement of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act became unenforceable upon repeal of the requirement. The court first rejects the defendant's argument that the rep...

Findings of a former Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) concerning transboundary air pollution affecting Canada, the court holds, give the current Administrator a non-discretionary duty under §115 of the Clean Air Act to order curtailment of the pollution if he finds that Ca...

The court holds that the district court did not abuse its discretion when it refused, based on its finding that no environmental impact statement (EIS) was required, to preliminarily enjoin a New Hampshire highway project involving the upgrading of a 0.9-mile stretch of road. The court first holds t...

The court holds that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator acted arbitrarily and capriciously and abused her discretion in granting a waiver to American Methyl Corporation under §211(f)(4) of the Clean Air Act for a methanol fuel additive. In a footnote the court rules that, altho...

The court holds that reference of liability issues to a Special Master in a case initiated under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act was improper, but upholds the reference with regard to pretrial matters and damages. First, the court notes that Federal Rule of ...

The court holds that the Forest Service probably violated the National Environmental Policy Act in failing to prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for tree cutting in wilderness areas to control southern pine beetle infestations, but did not violate the Endangered Species Act. In examinin...

The court holds that the Secretary of Interior acted within his authority under the Independent Offices Appropriation Act (IOAA) and the Minerals Leasing Act by issuing regulations requiring applicants for right-of-way permits to reimburse the government for costs of processing the applications, inc...

The court holds that the Forest Service's failure to assert federal reserved water rights, for the Colorado wilderness areas it administers, is a reviewable agency action under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). Defendants argue that review is precluded by the exception to the general rule of r...