LEGAL UPDATES

2011: Richard Drury named California Attorney of the Year for Supreme Court victory requiring CEQA review for a diesel project constructed at the ConocoPhillips refinery in Wilmington, California... read more (pdf)

On May 17, 2011, the Ninth Circuit released its opinion in Northwest Environmental Defense Center (NEDC) v. Brown that logging roads where stormwater runoff is collected in systems of ditches, channels, and culverts, then discharged into adjacent rivers unambiguously constitute "point sources" under the Clean Water Act, and such discharges therefore require NPDES permits. Lozeau Drury submitted an amicus brief on behalf of NRDC and EPIC in the case...
read the opinion (pdf)
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In April 2011, on behalf of CSPA, Lozeau Drury submitted comments to the State Water Resources Control Board on the update the Draft Industrial General Permit, the Water Board's proposed update to the existing 14-year old general permit for storm water discharges associated with industrial facilities in California... read more

In April 2011, Lozeau Drury LLP, on behalf of the Friends of the West Shore, submitted extensive written comments on the Homewood Mountain Resort Ski Area Master Plan Draft Environmental Impact Report/Environmental Impact Statement. The proposed large-scale resort expansion will have significant impacts on traffic, air pollution, and other environmental impacts in and around the West Shore area. The comments identified numerous environmental issues arising under CEQA, NEPA, the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency (TRPA) Regional Plan and TRPA's Code of Ordinances that must be addressed, and sought significant revisions to the Draft EIS... read more

In March and April, 2011, Lozeau Drury LLP, on behalf of the League to Save Lake Tahoe, submitted written comments on the Final Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for the City of South Lake Tahoe General Plan Update. The comments addressed the project's significant air quality impacts, and failure to comply with CEQA, with the TRPA Regional Plan, and with the Tahoe Regional Planning Compact, Lake Tahoe's governing land use document that empowers the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency to establish environmental threshold carrying capacities, a regional plan, and implementing ordinances to protect the Lake's fragile ecosystem while providing opportunities for orderly growth and development... read more

On January 14, 2011, Lozeau Drury LLP and Meyers Nave filed suit on behalf of the City of Petaluma, Petaluma River Council, Madrone Audubon Society, Friends of Shollenberger Park, Moms for Clean Air, Petaluma Tomorrow, and several individual plaintiffs, against the County of Sonoma, the Dutra Group, and other defendants to challenge the County's approval of the Dutra asphalt plant, approved for construction on the banks of the Petaluma River, at the entrance to the City of Petaluma and immediately across from Schollenberger Park, a renowned recreational and birdwatching site. The lawsuit alleges numerous violations of CEQA and other land use laws...
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On December 28, 2010, on behalf of the Coalition for Clean Air, Center for Environmental Health, Association of Irritated Residents and Teamsters Joint Council 7, Lozeau Drury LLP filed an action in Tulare County Superior Court challenging the City of Visalia's approval of a massive 500,000 to 750,000 square foot truck distribution center for highly toxic chemicals and other materials proposed by VWR International, LLC. The lawsuit challenged the City's failure to conduct environmental and land use review for the project under CEQA, the Clean Air Act, and land use laws. The case is currently pending at the California Fifth District Court of Appeal...
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In November 2010, the Center for Biological Diversity, represented by Lozeau Drury LLP, settled a CEQA lawsuit against the California Department of Parks and Recreation and other defendants, that challenged the respondents' failure to prepare an Environmental Impact Report for an off-road vehicle park expansion in the Rock Creek area of the El Dorado National Forest, home to a large number of endangered, threatened, protected and sensitive plant and animal species, including the California Red Legged Frog, the El Dorado Manzanita, and many others. The project proposed to add 8.9 miles of new off-road vehicle trails to the Rock Creek area, construct 3 bridges, and perform invasive rock blasting, excavation, and other construction "improvements" likely to result in a significant increase in human and vehicle use of the Rock Creek area. As a result of the settlement, reached less than six months after the initial filing of the litigation in July 2010, the Department set aside its project approval and approval of a Negative Declaration, and has agreed to perform CEQA review for the project... read more

On June 13, 2011, Lozeau Drury LLP won a lawsuit on behalf of Parker Shattuck Neighbors challenging the City of Berkeley's approval of a 155-unit mixed use Berkeley development project. The City proposed to build the project on a highly contaminated site without any environmental review to ensure protection of future residents. The court held that the City Council improperly amended the project without public hearing and invalidated the project approval. As a result, the community will be able to raise all of its issues to the City and ensure proper environmental remediation and review... read more

In October 2010, on behalf of the Ocean Conservancy, Lozeau Drury presented written CEQA comments to the California Fish and Game Commission supporting proposed modifications to the Commission's regulations governing marine protected areas off the California coast, which regulations pose to create beneficial effects on aquatic populations in state waters between Point Conception in Santa Barbara County and the California border with Mexico. Following the comment period, final regulations were adopted in December 2010... read news release read more

On September 27, 2010, on behalf of the California Sportfishing Protection Alliance and the California Water Impact Network, Lozeau Drury LLP submitted a 63-page comment letter to the California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley Region questioning the legality and effectiveness of the Regional Board's Draft Irrigated Lands Regulatory Program Environmental Impact Report. The irrigated Lands Program is responsible for addressing toxic and other pollutant discharges from the estimated 25,000 farms in California's Central Valley... read more

On September 13, 2010, Lozeau Drury submitted extensive written comments to the Lahontan Water Quality Control Board and Nevada Division of Environmental Protection, on behalf of the League to Save Lake Tahoe, regarding the Draft Lake Tahoe TMDL Technical Report, Draft Lake Tahoe TMDL Report and Draft Basin Plan. The plans seek to establish a TMDL from both point sources and nonpoint sources affecting the Lake that will ensure compliance with Lake Tahoe's deep water transparency standard. The comments requested further development of the proposed standards to ensure adequate, enforceable pollution controls for the Lake. The League submitted further comments to the Sate Water Board in March 2011...
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On August 14, 2010, Lozeau Drury LLP, on behalf of California Sportfishing Protection Alliance, filed a lawsuit against Davis Waste Removal for violations of the federal Clean Water Act and the State of California's General Industrial Storm Water permit at the company's facility in Davis, California... read more

On August 13, 2010, Lozeau Drury LLP, on behalf of California Sportfishing Protection Alliance, filed a lawsuit against Syar Concrete for violations of the federal Clean Water Act and the State of California's General Industrial Storm Water permit at the company's Woodland facility... read more

On August 5, 2010, Lozeau Drury LLP, on behalf of California Sportfishing Protection Alliance and the Petaluma River Council, filed a lawsuit against three waste handling facilities owned by the North Bay Corporation in Sonoma County - West Sonoma Disposal Services, Redwood Empire Disposal and Novato Disposal Service - for violations of the federal Clean Water Act and the State of California's General Industrial Storm Water permit... read more

On June 17, 2010, the California Court of Appeal issued a precedent setting ruling in CSPA's litigation to enforce the Department of Water Resources' duties under the California Endangered Species Act to protect listed fish in operating the State's massive Central Valley Project's Delta pumps. Rejecting appeals brought by three water districts, and after hearing argument from Lozeau Drury's Mike Lozeau, the Court of Appeal ruled that CESA applies to all of California's state agencies, including DWR. On September 29, 2010, the California Supreme Court rejected the water district's petitions for review, bringing to a successful conclusion CSPA's victory in 2007 in obtaining an order that DWR comply with CESA's take permitting requirements or shut down the Central Valley pumps. DWR has since obtained authority from DFG under CESA. The validity of DFG's take authorizations remains under investigation by CSPA... read the Court of Appeal's decision

On May 26, 2010, CSPA represented by Lozeau Drury and Lawyers for Clean Water, settled its Clean Water Act lawsuit against the El Dorado Irrigation District in exchange for substantial reductions in the number of sewage overflows the District spills into Deer Creek and an environmental mitigation payment of $120,000... read more

On May 6, 2010, Lozeau Drury LLP, on behalf of California Sportfishing Protection Alliance, filed a lawsuit against Allied Waste Services for violations of the federal Clean Water Act and the State of California's General Industrial Storm Water permit at the company's facility in Rancho Cordova, California... read more ()

On March 15, 2010, Lozeau Drury LLP won a unanimous 7-to-0 decision from the California Supreme Court against ConocoPhillips, one of the largest oil companies in the world, requiring CEQA review for a diesel project constructed at its Wilmington refinery. The decision, Communities for a Better Environment v. South Coast Air Quality Management District et al., defined the CEQA environmental baseline to be applied by permitting agencies as the actual environmental conditions at the time a project is proposed, rather than hypothetical maximum emission limits that were authorized but never fully utilized under previously issued permits... read more

In March 2010, on behalf of Carpenters Union Local 713, Lozeau Drury assisted in negotiating a settlement with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission and various environmental groups over the reconstruction of the Calaveras Dam that ensured significant protections for fish in the East Bay's Alameda Creek. The settlement resulted in critical environmental protections for migrating fish, including flow monitoring and the installation of fish ladders at the dam, addressing the concerns of citizen and environmental groups while allowing the important Bay Area water supply project to proceed... read more

In March 2010, CSPA entered into settlements of three of the Clean Water Act enforcement cases being handled by Lozeau Drury. The settlements included storm water violations by Syar Industries at their Lake Herman Quarry, Tri City Rock for violations at its facility in South San Francisco Bay and Melrose Metals for violations at its facility in Fremont...
read news release (Syar)
read news release (Tri-City Rock)
read news release (Melrose Metals)

On December 7, 2009, the Alameda Superior Court ordered the closure of the Carnegie State Vehicle Recreation Area because the California Department of Parks & Recreation has been blatantly violating the state's water quality law by failing to report its massive pollution discharges to Corral Hollow Creek from sediment and heavy metals eroding off hillsides and trails used by OHV and dirt bike enthusiasts. On March 16, 2010, the Court of Appeal overturned the Superior Court's order, finding that CSPA and PEER must first ask the Regional Board and State Board to enforce the water quality law they have been charged with implementing. On March 19, 2010, Lozeau Drury petitioned the Central Valley Regional Board to do just that. After receiving no response from that agency, Lozeau Drury filed a petition with the State Board. The case and the petition remain pending...
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On 21 June 2011, CSPA settled a Clean Water Act lawsuit against the Allied Waste Services regarding serious violations of the California General Industrial Stormwater Permit. Allied Waste Services Concrete operates a 4-acre waste hauling and collection facility in Rancho Cordova, California... read more

Richard Drury named California Attorney of the Year for lawsuit victory requiring school buses to install pollution controls to protect health of thousands of children... read more (pdf)

Federal court rules that Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and Department of Energy must comply with National Environmental Policy Act before proceeding with supercomputer center. Read more...

Community group files lawsuit against West Oakland recycling firm... read more

Originally slated for approval in December 2008, Lozeau Drury has been representing the Petaluma River Council in opposing a proposed asphalt plant proposed to be located on the banks of the Petaluma River immediately across from Schollenberger Park, a favorite recreational and birdwatching site. The project's fate remains up in the air... read more

In August 2009, CSPA, represented by Lozeau Drury, settled a Clean Water Act case alleging violations of storm water pollution regulations filed against a waste collection and recycling facility located in Fairfield, California... read more

In February 2009, CSPA, represented by Lozeau Drury, reached a settlement in a Clean Water enforcement case brought against Waste Management for storm water pollution at the companies Davis Street facility in Fremont, California... read more

In July 2009, CSPA, represented by Lozeau Drury as well as Lawyers For Clean Water, settled litigation under the Clean water Act against the City of Stockton for thousands of sewage overflows from the City's sewer system... read more

Lozeau Drury files lawsuit on behalf of the League to Save Lake Tahoe challenging south shore development... read more