COMMUNITIES FOR A BETTER ENVIRONMENT v. SOUTH COAST AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT DIST.

No. S161190.

48 Cal.4th 310 (2010)

226 P.3d 985

COMMUNITIES FOR A BETTER ENVIRONMENT, Plaintiff and Appellant, v. SOUTH COAST AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT DISTRICT et al., Defendants and Respondents; CONOCOPHILLIPS COMPANY, Real Party in Interest and Respondent. CARLOS VALDEZ et al., Plaintiffs and Appellants, v. SOUTH COAST AIR QUALITY MANAGEMENT DISTRICT et al., Defendants and Respondents; CONOCOPHILLIPS COMPANY, Real Party in Interest and Respondent.

Supreme Court of California.

March 15, 2010.


Attorney(s) appearing for the Case

Adrienne L. Bloch, Shana Lazerow; Lozeau/Drury and Richard T. Drury for Plaintiff and Appellant Communities for a Better Environment.

Richard M. Frank; Adams Broadwell Joseph & Cardozo, Marc D. Joseph and Richard T. Drury for Plaintiffs and Appellants Carlos Valdez et al.

Bill Lockyer and Edmund G. Brown, Jr., Attorneys General, Tom Greene and Dane R. Gillette, Chief Assistant Attorneys General, Theodora P. Berger and Pamela C. Hamanaka, Assistant Attorneys General, Sally Magnani Knox, Lisa Trankley and Susan L. Durbin, Deputy Attorneys General for State of California as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Plaintiffs and Appellants.

Luke Cole for Association of Irritated Residents, California Communities Against Toxics, California Environmental Rights Alliance, California Safe Schools, Center on Race, Poverty & the Environment, Coalition for a Safe Environment, Community Water Center, TriCounty Watchdogs and Youth United for Community Action as Amici Curiae on behalf of Plaintiffs and Appellants.

Frank G. Wells Environmental Law Clinic and Sean B. Hecht for Sierra Club, Endangered Habitats League, Natural Resources Defense Council and Planning and Conservation League as Amici Curiae on behalf of Plaintiffs and Appellants.

Kurt R. Wiese, Barbara Baird; Woodruff, Spradlin & Smart, Bradley R. Hogin, Edward L. Bertrand and Ricia R. Hager for Defendants and Respondents.

Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith, Daniel V. Hyde, Paul J. Beck and Azusa K. Tokudome for California Association of Sanitation Agencies as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Plaintiffs and Appellants.

Latham & Watkins, Robert A. Wyman, Jr., and Emily Taylor for Regulatory Flexibility Group as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Defendants and Respondents. Weston Benshoof Rochefort Rubalcava & MacCuish, Alston & Bird, Ward L. Benshoof, Jocelyn D. Thompson; Cox Castle & Nicholson and Michael H. Zischke for Real Party in Interest and Respondent.

Diepenbrock Harrison, Mark D. Harrison and Dan M. Silverboard for California Construction and Industrial Materials Association as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Real Party in Interest and Respondent.

Manatt, Phelps & Phillips and Michael M. Berger for Western Independent Refiners Association as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Defendants and Respondents and Real Party in Interest and Respondent.

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, Kevin M. Fong and David R. Farabee for Western States Petroleum Association as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Defendants and Respondents and Real Party in Interest and Respondent.

Kronick Moskovitz Tiedemann & Girard, P. Addison Covert, Robin Leslie Stewart and Stacy L. Asato Toledo for California School Boards Association as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Defendants and Respondents and Real Party in Interest and Respondent.

Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck and Lisabeth D. Rothman for California Building Industry Association as Amicus Curiae on behalf of Defendants and Respondents and Real Party in Interest and Respondent.


OPINION

WERDEGAR, J.

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (Pub. Resources Code, § 21000 et seq.)1 requires a public agency to prepare an environmental impact report (EIR) only on projects that may have significant environmental effects (§§ 21100, subd. (a), 21151, subd. (a)). To decide whether a given project's environmental effects are likely to be significant, the agency must use...

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