Diné Citizens Against Ruining Our Env't v. Jewell

Full Case Name
DINÉ CITIZENS AGAINST RUINING OUR ENVIRONMENT; San Juan Citizens Alliance; WildEarth Guardians; and Natural Resources Defense Council, Plaintiffs, v. Sally JEWELL, in her official capacity as Secretary of the United States Department of the Interior; United States Bureau of Land Management, an agency within the United States Department of the Interior; and Neil Kornze, in his official capacity as Director of the United States Bureau of Land Management, Defendants, and WPX Energy Production, LLC; Encana Oil & Gas (USA) Inc.; BP America Company; ConocoPhillips Company; Burlington Resources Oil & Gas Company LP; American Petroleum Institute; and Anschutz Exploration Corporation, Intervenor-Defendants.
Description

Environmental activists brought action against the federal government challenging Bureau of Land Management's approval of applications for drill permits in the San Juan Basin as in violation of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA). Court held BLM's approval of applications did not violate NEPA nor NHPA, and dismissed the case.

Date
04-23-2018
Court
United States District Court for the District of New Mexico
Jurisdiction
United States
Incident Location
San Juan County, NM; McKinley County, NM
Disputed Act

Environmental activists brought action against federal government challenging the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) approval of applications for permit to drill in the San Juan Basin, alleging that BLM violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by failing to analyze indirect effects of fracking on Chaco Park, a National Historic site, including light pollution from nighttime drilling activity.

Holding
The Court found that the Board of Land Management's approval of applications for drilling permits did not violate the National Environmental Policy Act and failure to consider effects of gas and oil wells in Chaco Park and satellites did not violate the National Historic Preservation Act.
Disposition