The court holds that the Bureau of Reclamation violated the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by renewing water supply contracts with several water districts in California before consulting with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). The districts rely ...

The court holds that a landowner cannot recover from previous site owner petroleum contamination cleanup costs it incurred after it invoked Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) §7002's statutory process for bringing a citizen suit. The court first holds that a private party cannot recover ...

The court holds that a Florida county's Endangered Species Act (ESA) §10 incidental take permit does not authorize it to take protected sea turtles through purely mitigatory measures associated with artificial beachfront lighting. The court first holds that the county lacks the U.S. Fish and Wildli...

The court holds that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) does not have the authority to impose its own separate enforcement penalties on a Missouri corporation after the corporation and an authorized state agency negotiated a state court-approved settlement for Resource Conservation and R...

The court holds that a canning company may seek cleanup and abatement costs from the former owner of its canning operation site under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). The court first holds that the canning company's post-filing cleanup costs are not clearly barred by RCRA. Although...

The court holds that the Secretary of the Interior violated the Endangered Species Act (ESA) by failing to designate critical habitat for the silvery minnow. The Secretary claimed that he could not complete the minnow's critical habitat designation due to fiscal limitations imposed by Congress. The ...

The court denies a state's motion to stay a decision that the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) improperly decided that the evolutionary significant unit of coho salmon did not warrant listing as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The court first holds that the state...

The court holds that the National Marine Fisheries Service's (NMFS') decision not to list the Oregon Coast evolutionary significant unit (ESU) of coho salmon as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) was arbitrary and capricious and was based on an erroneous legal standard. The court firs...

The court holds unlawful a U.S. Department of Commerce fishing quota that allocates the summer catch of scup on a state-by-state basis for Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island. Massachusetts argued that the quota was based on incomplete historical data that reflected only scup landings from lar...

The court denies New Mexico's request for a preliminary injunction and construction of a 1992 injunction to prevent shipments of waste to the waste isolation pilot plant (WIPP) in that state. The court first holds that the state cannot prove a likelihood of success on the merits. A previous injuncti...