ELR Citation: ELR 20744
No(s). A-33-73 (D. Alaska Aug 10, 1973)

The court refuses to issue a preliminary injunction against construction of the proposed Copper River Highway in southcentral Alaska because plaintiffs failed to show that they would suffer irreparable injury if the injunction were denied. Plaintiffs' assertions that construction of the highway would threaten the wilderness character of the area were countered by defendants' claims that the present construction is merely repair and maintenance of an existing roadway, and in any case are held by the court to be too speculative and remote to constitute irreparable harm. Although it notes that plaintiffs were persuasive that the highway is a federal project, the court does not rule on whether it is a major federal project significantly affecting the environment. Since this is not an exceptional case like Lathan v. Volpe, 455 F.2d 1111 (9th Cir. 1971), in which a departure from established equitable doctrine is justified, an additional ground for denial exists in that, given the present state of the record, the court cannot find that plaintiffs are likely to prevail on the merits.

Counsel for Plaintiffs
Sanford Sagalkin
Falkner, Banfield, Doogan, Gross & Holmes
311 Franklin Street
Juneau, Alaska 99801

John D. Hoffman
Sierra Club Legal Defense Fund, Inc.
311 California Street, #311
San Francisco, California 94104

Counsel for Defendants
Ralph Stemp Asst. Attorney General
Rm 428, State Capitol Building
Juneau, Alaska 99801

Keith Goltz Asst. U.S. Attorney
P.O. Box 680
Anchorage, Alaska 99501