The Public Land and Resources Law Review

By Matt Jennings

In Montana Wilderness Association v. McAllister, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that the 2006 Gallatin National Forest Travel Management Plan violated the Montana Wilderness Study Act of 1977.  The Court found the plan failed to maintain the wilderness character of a wilderness study area as it existed in 1977 and provide recreational users opportunities for solitude, consistent with the level of solitude at the time the Act was passed.

Read the full summary here.

By Brad Jones

In Northern Plains Resource Council v. Surface Transportation Board, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that the Surface Transportation Board failed to adequately address, or update, several key environmental impacts in its Final Environmental Impact Statement prior to approving a privately-financed railroad in southeast Montana.  The railroad was proposed to haul large amounts of coal from the Montana’s Powder and Tongue River Basins.  As a result of the court’s holding, business interests hoping to capitalize on Montana’s coal potential have been dealt a setback, although not necessarily a final defeat.

Read the full summary here.

See the news story here.

See the Conference’s full website and press release here.

The Blackfeet Tribe, located in Northwestern Montana, has just signed an agreement with a Florida-based company to recycle and treat water being used in hydraulic-fracturing.  The plan is welcome news to the Tribe, which is currently experiencing an uplift in oil and gas production on the Reservation.

Read the full story here.

By: Dustin Leftridge

The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit dismissed three challenges brought by a Montana sulfur company against the EPA.  The EPA determined that the state of Montana’s implementation of the Clean Air Act’s sections on sulfur dioxide were inadequate and promulgated rules to remedy the deficiencies.  The court held the EPA’s action was not arbitrary or capricious.

Read the full summary here.

By: Heather Baltes

In Greater Yellowstone Coalition, Inc. v. Servheen, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s decision to remove the Yellowstone grizzly population from the threatened species list for failing to articulate a rational connection between the available data and its conclusion that whitebark pine declines were unlikely to threaten the Yellowstone grizzly bear.  The court affirmed the district court’s decision explaining that, based on information included in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s final rule, it cannot be reasonably denied that whitebark pine loss presents at least a potential threat to the Yellowstone grizzly population.  The court reversed the district court’s determination that there were inadequate existing regulatory mechanisms to protect the Yellowstone grizzly population.  Specifically, the court found National Forest Plans and National Park Compendia can serve as adequate regulatory mechanisms for protecting a delisted species.  A partial dissent suggested the National Forest Plans and National Park Compendia were inadequate regulatory mechanisms because they did not have the force of law.

Read the full summary here.

By: Ben Sudduth

In a 2007 Travel Management Plan, the United States Forest Service limited roads and trails designated for motorized recreation use and implemented a dispersed camping rule.  Alleging violations of the Montana Wilderness Study Act and the National Environmental Policy Act, groups in support of motorized recreation challenged the Service’s Plan.  The trial court granted the recreational groups’ motion for summary judgment on both the Study Act and NEPA allegations; the Ninth Circuit reversed.

Read the full summary here.