Justia California Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

A company with a lease in the Brentwood Oil Field, Contra Costa County, proposed to convert an inactive oil and gas extraction well into a water injection well for disposing of treated wastewater, a byproduct of oil and gas drilling. The well in question had been built in 1963, used for extraction until 1984, and then plugged. The company currently disposed of wastewater by trucking it offsite but sought to inject it underground instead. Regulatory agencies, including CalGEM, the State Water Board, and the Regional Water Board, expressed concerns about potential contamination of local clean water sources due to possible migration of wastewater. After additional technical analysis and the imposition of specific project conditions, these concerns were resolved, and CalGEM approved the project, issuing a notice of exemption (NOE) under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), relying on the “class 1” categorical exemption for minor alterations of existing facilities with negligible expansion of use.The Contra Costa County Superior Court found substantial evidence did not support CalGEM’s determination that the project fell within the class 1 exemption, concluding that converting an oil and gas well into a water injection well did not constitute negligible or no expansion of former use. CalGEM agreed to comply with the writ. On appeal, the First Appellate District, Division Five, reversed, holding that the exemption applied because the environmental risks of the new use were negligible.The Supreme Court of California reviewed the case and reversed the Court of Appeal’s judgment. The Supreme Court held that the phrase “negligible or no expansion of existing or former use” in the class 1 exemption refers to the nature or degree of a structure or facility’s use, not to the risk of environmental harm caused by such a change. The court remanded the case for reconsideration under this proper framework and did not reach the additional question regarding project conditions as mitigation. View "Sunflower Alliance v. Dept. of Conservation" on Justia Law

This case involves a challenge to a tariff adopted by the California Public Utilities Commission (Commission) that significantly reduced the compensation utilities pay to customers who generate electricity through rooftop solar panels and export excess energy to the grid. Petitioners, including environmental organizations, argued that the Commission’s tariff was inconsistent with Public Utilities Code section 2827.1, which requires the Commission to ensure that compensation for customer-generators reflects the costs and benefits of renewable generation and supports sustainable growth, particularly among disadvantaged communities.The First Appellate District, Division Three, of the California Court of Appeal granted a writ of review and affirmed the Commission’s decision. In doing so, the Court of Appeal applied a highly deferential standard of review derived from the California Supreme Court’s decision in Greyhound Lines, Inc. v. Public Utilities Com., asking only whether the Commission’s interpretation of the statute bore a reasonable relation to statutory purposes and language. The court concluded that the Commission’s approach satisfied this standard and declined to engage in a more searching review of the statutory interpretation.The Supreme Court of California reviewed the case to determine whether the deferential Greyhound standard remains appropriate following legislative amendments to the Public Utilities Code. The Supreme Court held that, for Commission decisions not pertaining solely to water corporations, the deferential Greyhound standard no longer applies. Instead, courts must independently review the Commission’s statutory interpretations under the standards set forth in Public Utilities Code sections 1757 and 1757.1, which parallel the review of other administrative agencies. The Supreme Court reversed the judgment of the Court of Appeal and remanded the case for further proceedings consistent with this less deferential standard. View "Center for Biological Diversity, Inc. v. Public Utilities Com." on Justia Law

In this challenge to "Measure Z," a Monterey County ordinance, the Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the court of appeal affirming the judgment of the trial court in favor of Plaintiffs on preemption grounds, holding that Cal. Pub. Res. Code 3106 preempts Measure Z.Plaintiffs - Chevron U.S.A. Inc. and other oil producers and mineral rights holders - brought six actions against the County challenging Measure Z, a local ordinance banning oil and gas wastewater injection and impoundment and the drilling of new oil and gas wells in the County's unincorporated areas. The trial court issued a writ of mandate directing the County to invalidate two prohibitions in the measure that applied to the County's unincorporated areas. The court of appeal affirmed on grounds of state preemption. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Measure Z contradicts, and therefore conflicts with and is preempted by, section 3106. View "Chevron U.S.A., Inc. v. County of Monterey" on Justia Law

Plaintiff, an environmental organization, filed this administrative mandamus action to challenge the issuance of a federally required permit authorizing the Moss Landing Powerplant (MLPP) to draw cooling water from the adjacent Moss Landing Harbor and Elkhorn Slough. This case presented issues concerning the technological and environmental standards, and the procedures for administrative and judicial review, that apply when a thermal powerplant, while pursuing the issuance or renewal of a cooling water intake permit from a regional board, also sought necessary approval from the State Energy Resources Conservation and Development Commission (Energy Commission), of a plan to add additional generating units to the plant, with related modifications to the cooling intake system. The court held that the superior court had jurisdiction to entertain the administrative mandamus petition here under review. The court also held that the trial court erred when it deferred a final judgment, ordered an interlocutory remand to the board for further "comprehensive" examination of that issue, then denied mandamus after determining that the additional evidence and analysis considered by the board on remand supported the board's reaffirmed findings. The court further held that recent Supreme Court authority confirmed that, when applying federal Clean Water Act (CWA), 33 U.S.C. 1326(b), standards for the issuance of this permit, the Regional Water Board properly utilized cost-benefit analysis. The court declined to address several other issues discussed by the parties. Accordingly, the court affirmed the judgment of the Court of Appeals. View "Voices of the Wetlands v. CA State Water Resources Control Bd., et al." on Justia Law