Environment | Law | National

Appeals court sides with Pit River Tribe in sacred site dispute

Tuesday, July 21, 2015

Supporters rallied in front of the federal courthouse in San Francisco, California, on March 12. Photo by Becky White / Protect Medicine Lake

A federal appeals court on Monday reopened a long-running challenge to a geothermal energy plant near sacred Medicine Lake in California.

In a unanimous decision, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals said the Bureau of Land Management failed to adequately consider the views of the Pit River Tribe. The three-judge panel ordered the agency to follow the National Environmental Protection Act and the National Historic Preservation Act before moving forward with leases for the controversial project.

"BLM must conduct a review pursuant to NEPA and NHPA considering the cultural, historical, and environmental effects of its leasing decision before making its lease-extension determination," Judge Morgan Christen wrote for the majority.

Indianz.Com SoundCloud: 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Oral Arguments in Pit River Tribe v. BLM

The decision came less than four months after the tribe and its supporters marched to the courthouse in San Francisco to call attention to the importance of Medicine Lake. The site is known for its healing powers and has been the subject of litigation for more than a decade.

“Medicine Lake is our church. It is there we heal our bodies and our spirits. Would you want a power plant in your church?" elder Cecilia Silvas said earlier this year.

Calpine Corporation wants to build a geothermal energy plant on federal land in an area known as the Medicine Lake Highlands but the project has been on hold for years due to tribal and environmental concerns. The case has been to the 9th Circuit three times since 2006.

YouTube: 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Oral Arguments in Pit River Tribe v. BLM

The dispute arose when BLM continued the company's existing leases without consulting the tribe. A federal judge sided with the agency and said the tribe's objections did not fall within the "zone of interests" contemplated by the Geothermal Steam Act.

On appeal, the 9th Circuit reversed. The court held that the tribe was not only challenging the continuation of the leases but also BLM's decision not to extend the leases.

The difference between continuation and extension is critical because an extension requires tribal consultation. But the BLM has never fully explained why it changed course on that issue, the 9th Circuit stated.

A view of Medicine Lake in California. Photo from Protect Medicine Lake / Facebook

"Because Pit River’s operative complaint challenges BLM’s announcement that the leases were subject to continuation rather than extension, we conclude that Pit River’s claims include a challenge" contemplated by the Geothermal Steam Act, Judge Christen wrote in the 28-page ruling

The case will now return to the lower court for further proceedings. Turtle Talk has posted documents from the appeal in Pit River Tribe v. BLM.

9th Circuit Decision:
Pit River Tribe v. BLM (July 20, 2015)