ELR Citation: 53 ELR 20036
No(s). 21-cv-04734-HSG (N.D. Cal. Feb 27, 2023) (Gilliam, J.)

A district court denied an animal advocacy group's and individuals' motion for summary judgment in a challenge to the National Park Service's (NPS') management of the tule elk population in the Tomales Point area of Point Reyes National Seashore. The plaintiffs argued NPS' failure to timely revise its 1980 management plan caused elk to die from lack of adequate forage and water, in violation of the APA. NPS argued plaintiffs lacked standing, and could neither establish a procedural injury because the management plan did not affect their interests nor demonstrate that revisions to the plan would affect the management or health of the elk. The court found that the plaintiffs had an aesthetic interest in the park's resources, but failed to demonstrate that NPS had a non-discretionary duty to act. It denied summary judgment for the group, and granted NPS' cross-motion.