California Court of Appeal

In dispute over potential environmental impacts resulting from a project enabling real party to produce ultra low sulfur diesel, judgment against plaintiffs is reversed in part where defendant-district abused its discretion in issuing a negative declaration for the diesel fuel manufacturing project at issue as plaintiffs offered substantial evidence supporting a fair argument that the project's nitrogen dioxide emissions may have a significant effect on the environment.

Appellate Information

• Decided 01/16/2008
• Published 01/16/2008

Judges

• DOI TODD, J.

Court

• California Court of Appeal

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Communities for a Better Environment, Adrienne L. Bloch and Shana Lazerow, Oakland, for Plaintiffs and Appellants Communities for a Better Environment., Adams Broadwell Joseph & Cardozo, Marc D. Joseph, Richard T. Drury, San Francisco, for Plaintiffs and Appellants Carlos Valdez et al., Center on Race Poverty and the Environment and Luke Cole, San Francisco, for Amici Curiae, in support of Plaintiffs and Appellants Communities for a Better Environment and Carlos Valdez et al., Bill Lockyer and Edmund G. Brown, Jr., Attorneys General, Dane R. Gillette, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Pamela C. Hamanaka, Assistant Attorney General, Sally Magnani Knox, Lisa Trankley and Susan L. Durbin, Deputy Attorneys General, for Amicus Curiae State of California, in support of Plaintiffs and Appellants Carlos Valdez et al.


• For Appellees:
  
• Woodruff, Spradlin & Smart, Bradley R. Hogin, Orange, Edward L. Bertrand;  South Coast AQMD, Kurt R. Wiese and Barbara Baird, Diamond Bar, for Defendant and Respondent South Coast Air Quality Management District., Weston Benshoof Rochefort Rubalcava & MacCuish, Ward L. Benshoof, Jocelyn D. Thompson, Los Angeles;  Cox Castle & Nicholson and Michael H. Zischke, San Francisco, for Real Party in Interest and Respondent.