On Thursday, March 12, 2015, advanced Environmental Law Clinic students Evan Stein (JD ’15) and Jason George (JD ’15) presented oral argument before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in San Francisco.

Evan and Jason represented clinic clients the Pit River Tribe and a number of environmental organizations in their effort to save the Medicine Lake Highlands in northeastern California from industrial geothermal development.  The Highlands are sacred to, and have been used for spiritual and cultural purposes by, members of the Pit River Tribe and other Tribes for over 10,000 years.  The Highlands also serve as a major water supply source for California and hold exceptional recreational, habitat, and other environmental resources.

At issue in the current Ninth Circuit appeal is whether the clinic’s clients have “prudential” standing to challenge decisions by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to extend 26 geothermal leases for 40 years, and whether the agency had to conduct environmental and cultural review before granting any such extension.  Evan and Jason argued forcefully that the answer to both questions is “yes.”

Video of the argument is available here.