American Motorcyclist Ass'n v. Watt

• Citation: 714 F.2d 962
• Decision Date: 01 September 1983
• Docket Number: Nos. 82-5099,82-5100,s. 82-5099
• Parties: , 15 Envtl. L. Rep. 20,735 AMERICAN MOTORCYCLIST ASSOCIATION, etc., et al., Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. James G. WATT, etc., et al., Defendants-Appellees. COUNTY OF INYO, a political subdivision of the State of California, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. James G. WATT, etc., et al., Defendants-Appellees.
• Court: United States Courts of Appeals. United States Court of Appeals (9th Circuit)

Page 962

714 F.2d 962

20 ERC 1838, 15 Envtl. L. Rep. 20,735

AMERICAN MOTORCYCLIST ASSOCIATION, etc., et al., Plaintiffs-Appellants, v. James G. WATT, etc., et al., Defendants-Appellees.

COUNTY OF INYO, a political subdivision of the State of

California, Plaintiff-Appellant, v. James G. WATT, etc., et al., Defendants-Appellees.

Nos. 82-5099, 82-5100.

United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit.

Argued and Submitted May 3, 1983.

Decided Sept. 1, 1983.

Robert L. Klarquist, Washington, D.C., for defendants-appellees.

Robert E. Hinerfeld, Murphy, Thornton, Hinerfeld & Elson, Los Angeles, Cal., for plaintiffs-appellants.

Appeal from the United States District Court for the Central District of California.

Before WRIGHT and SCHROEDER, Circuit Judges, and REED, ^* District Judge.

SCHROEDER, Circuit Judge.

This is an appeal from the district court's denial of a preliminary injunction to prevent the federal government from implementing the California Desert Conservation Area Plan. Such a plan for land management is called for by section 601 of the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, 43 U.S.C. § 1781(d) (FLPMA). The district court considered plaintiffs' claims that implementation of this particular plan would violate portions of FLPMA. Plaintiffs on appeal argue that in addition to those claimed violations, the court should have considered alleged violations of the National Environmental Policy Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 4321 et seq. (NEPA).

We hold that under the applicable standards the district court did not abuse its discretion in refusing to issue an injunction. We further hold that the presence of a claim of violation of NEPA in addition to claims of FLPMA violations would not affect the district court's result in this case. We therefore affirm the district court's decision, reported at 534 F.Supp. 923 (C.D.Cal.1981).

I. The District Court Proceedings

Plaintiffs-Appellants are, first, the American Motorcyclist Association and Sports Committee, District 37, A.M.A., Inc. (AMA), a national organization of motorcyclists who participate in competitive and recreational motorcycle events, and, second, the County of Inyo (Inyo), a political subdivision of the state of California. Defendants-appellees are the Secretary of the Interior (Secretary), the Director of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), and the California State Director of the BLM.

The land management plan in question governs the use, development and protection of federal land in the California desert. See Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management, The California Desert Conservation Area Plan 6 (1980) (hereinafter the Plan). The Plan covers over 12 million acres (the approximate total area of New Hampshire and Vermont, combined) located within the 25 million acres (approximately the size of the State of Ohio) which Congress has designated the California Desert Conservation Area (CDCA) in section 601, 43 U.S.C. § 1781(c). As part of the FLPMA, Congress identified the CDCA as an area in need of conservation and protection. 43 U.S.C. § 1781(a). Congress directed the Secretary to enact interim land management regulations, but contemplated that after study, a long-range, comprehensive land use plan would be adopted for the federally owned lands in the area. 43 U.S.C. § 1781(d) & (e). The Plan was adopted in 1980.

Plaintiffs moved for a preliminary injunction before the Plan took effect, alleging that in adopting it the defendants violated various procedural provisions of NEPA, FLPMA and BLM planning regulations under FLPMA, 43 C.F.R. §§ 1600 et seq. Plaintiffs sought to enjoin implementation of the Plan until the defendants remedied the alleged defects.

In support of its motion for injunctive relief pending trial, AMA alleged that the Plan would prevent traditional recreational vehicle use of the California desert and would diminish the number and quality of motorcycle events. It contended that its members would be "irreparably harmed" by having to comply with time-consuming and frustrating permit applications for races. Inyo alleged that the Plan, which affects approximately half of Inyo County, is inconsistent with its own land use plan, that it failed to protect certain environmental features, and that its operation would erode Inyo's tax base.

The district court found there was a strong likelihood the plaintiffs would be able to prove that the BLM failed in several material respects to follow its planning regulations, in violation of subsections 202(c)(9) & (f) of FLPMA, 43 U.S.C. § 1712(c)(9) & (f). 534 F.Supp. at 935. The defects identified by the district court were the defendants' failure to develop a preferred alternative, to make appendices available to the public in a timely manner, to evaluate inconsistencies with local government plans and to make material changes in the Plan and Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) available for public comment. Id. at 935-36.

Despite the plaintiffs' probability of success on the merits, the court nevertheless determined that the equities did not warrant issuing a preliminary injunction because plaintiffs had not shown they would suffer irreparable harm, or that the balance of hardships tipped in their favor. It also found that a preliminary injunction would not be in the public interest.

In reaching its decision, the district court specifically refrained from considering plaintiffs' NEPA claims, holding instead that both plaintiffs lacked standing to raise such claims. 534 F.Supp. at 929 n. 6. The substance of plaintiffs' NEPA claims is similar in nature to their FLPMA claims, in that they challenge the defendants' failure properly to consider alternatives, to circulate documents and to respond to public comment. Plaintiffs contend on appeal that the district court erred in holding they lacked standing to raise the NEPA claims, and that existence of such claims requires issuance of a preliminary injunction.

II. Effect of the NEPA Claims on the Preliminary Injunction Decision

We recognize two sets of standards for evaluating claims to injunctive relief, which we have termed the "traditional" and the "alternative" tests. See Aleknagik Natives Ltd. v. Andrus, 648 F.2d 496, 501 (9th Cir.1980). The traditional equitable criteria for determining whether an injunction should issue are

(1) Have the movants established a strong likelihood of success on the merits; (2) does the balance of irreparable harm favor the movants; (3) does the public interest favor granting the injunction?

Id. The "alternative" test permits the moving party to meet its burden by demonstrating either a combination of probable success and the possibility of irreparable injury or that serious questions are raised and the balance of hardships tips sharply in its favor. Benda v. Grand Lodge of IAM, 584 F.2d 308, 314-15 (9th Cir.1978), cert. dismissed, 441 U.S. 937, 99 S.Ct. 2065, 60 L.Ed.2d 667 (1979); William Inglis & Sons Baking Co. v. ITT Continental Baking Co., 526 F.2d 86, 88 (9th Cir.1975). The district court here expressly applied both tests, and held that plaintiffs were not entitled to an injunction under either. We reverse an order issuing or denying a preliminary injunction only if the lower court abused its discretion, or based its decision upon erroneous legal premises. Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Comm'n v. National Football League, 634 F.2d 1197, 1200 (9th Cir.1980).

The plaintiffs identify as legal error the district court's holding that they lacked standing to raise NEPA claims. That holding is in serious doubt at least as to Inyo, in light of our intervening decision in California v. Block, 690 F.2d 753 (9th Cir.1982). We there held that a governmental entity in geographical proximity to the site of proposed action, and which must under NEPA be consulted in the EIS process, has standing to challenge the EIS. Id. at 776.

Assuming NEPA standing exists, however, it would not affect all of the factors which the district court considered. Because the NEPA claims are essentially similar to the FLPMA claims which the district court recognized plaintiffs had standing to raise, the injury to the plaintiffs is the same under both statutes. In addition, neither side contends that adding NEPA claims would materially affect the district court's analysis of the plaintiffs' likely success on the merits.

The only question then is whether plaintiffs are correct in their position that the existence of a probable NEPA violation affects the district court's assessment of the public interest. Plaintiffs contend that recognizing their NEPA claims would require us to hold that a preliminary injunction must issue in this case. For the purpose of considering this argument we assume not only that plaintiffs have standing to pursue the NEPA claims but also that they have made a strong showing on the merits.

The presence of strong NEPA claims gives rise to more liberal standards for granting an injunction. See Warm Springs Dam Task Force v. Gribble, 565 F.2d 549, 552 n. 2 (9th Cir.1977); Jones v. District of Columbia Redevelopment Land Agency, 499 F.2d 502, 512 (D.C.Cir.1974), cert. denied, 423 U.S. 937, 96 S.Ct. 299, 46 L.Ed.2d 271 (1975); Environmental Defense Fund v TVA, 468 F.2d 1164, 1184 (6th Cir.1972); Scherr v. Volpe, 466 F.2d 1027, 1034 (7th Cir.1972). The premise for relaxing the equitable tests in NEPA cases is that irreparable damage may be implied from the failure of responsible authorities to evaluate thoroughly the environmental impact of a proposed federal action. Friends of the Earth, Inc. v. Coleman, 518 F.2d 323, 330 (9th Cir.1975). In many instances those charging NEPA violations are able to make a compelling showing of imminent and irreversible harm unless the governmental action is stayed. See, e.g., Lathan v. Volpe, 455 F.2d 1111, 1116-17 (9th Cir.1971).

There are nevertheless cases where public concerns other than failure to comply with NEPA must be weighed in determining whether to grant an...