SMW Halts Subdivision Near Base of Mount Whitney
The firm wins a landmark case challenging Inyo County’s approval of a sprawl luxury home development project along Whitney Portal Road in the shadow of Mount Whitney. The court of appeal orders the County to consider an alternative location for the project, which still remains unbuilt. (Save Round Valley Alliance v. County of Inyo, 157 […]
Sale of Point Molate Requires CEQA Review
The firm wins a case challenging the City of Richmond’s proposed sale of over 200 acres of waterfront property for the development of a large casino and resort hotel. (East Bay Regional Park District v. City of Richmond (2007).) The firm continues to work with the East Bay Regional Park District to successfully prevent the […]
Dangerous Herbicide Use Restricted
The firm wins a CEQA case challenging programs of three Central Valley irrigation districts that would have applied dangerous herbicides to irrigation canals that provide important natural habitat. (DeltaKeeper v. Merced Irrigation Dist., South San Joaquin Irrigation Dist., and Oakdale Irrigation Dist. (2006).)
Exchange Agreements Open Door to Redevelopment of Oakland Army Base
The firm assists the Oakland Army Base Reuse Authority in negotiating series of land exchange and related agreements, authorized by legislation drafted by the firm (SB 674), that will enable the redevelopment of the former Army Base.
SMW Defends Ability Of NGOs to Enforce Clean Water Act
The firm obtains a ruling from the Ninth Circuit holding that an environmental organization gave adequate notice of its intent to sue under the Clean Water Act. (Waterkeepers Northern Cal. v. AG Industrial Manufacturing, Inc. (2004).)
Los Altos Hills Adopts Initiative to Preserve Public Open Space
After a grassroots group in Los Altos Hills qualifies an initiative, drafted by the firm, to preserve 157 acres of public open space and recreation lands, the City Council in 2003 adopts the measure outright.
SMW Negotiates Closure of Polluting Facility
The firm negotiates a settlement of a Clean Water Act case against Ultramar, requiring the operator of a petroleum-coke loading facility in Pittsburg to close its operations or install state-of-the-art technology. (S.F. BayKeeper v. Ultramar, Inc. (2002).)
SMW Stops Tosco from Evading Liability By Selling Polluting Facility
The firm obtains a Ninth Circuit ruling that Tosco Corporation cannot escape liability for decades of pollution from its petroleum-coke loading plant in Pittsburg by selling that facility during litigation. (San Francisco BayKeeper, Inc. v. Tosco Corporation, 309 F.3d 1153 (9th Cir. 2002).)
Gaviota Coast Protected
On behalf of Surfrider, the firm secures denial of a coastal development permit extension for the Dos Pueblos golf course along Santa Barbara’s rural Gaviota coast in 2001. Seventeen years later the firm negotiates a settlement that permits the development of two homes on the property, while allowing for public access to the coast and […]
SMW Lawsuit Compels State to Address Toxic Hot Spots in Waters
The firm wins a case requiring state water quality regulators to implement a statute addressing “toxic hot spots” in state waters. (DeltaKeeper v. State Water Resources Control Board (2001).)