Legal Victories

Between 1992 and 2003, CBE brought nearly a hundred lawsuits to protect the environment and public health, prevailing in over 90% of its cases.  CBE's accomplishments are widely recognized.  California Lawyer Magazine named CBE lawyers Attorneys of the Year for Environmental Law in 2001.

CBE v. SCAQMD/ConocoPhillips

In 2004, the AQMD issued a permit to ConocoPhillips Oil Refinery in Wilmington to produce ultra low sulfur without conducting full environmental review despite the fact that the project could increase daily emissions of nitrous oxide (NOx) by 455 pounds per day. NOx pollution causes asthma and other serious respiratory problems, respecially in children. Even though ultra low sulfur diesel is cleaner than some other diesel fuel, its production is much dirtier and causes more pollution, which is a major concern to Wilmington residents living on the fenceline to Conoco and to workers.

We filed a lawsuit in state court. We argued that, among other things, the AQMD had used a distorted interpretation of "baseline" to conclude that Conoco's increased NOx emissions were not significant. The Court of Appeal agreed with us that the baseline must reflect the actual environment at the time that environmental review commences for the project, and that there was substantial evidence that NOx emissions from the project may exceed the CEQA significance threshold. The defendants requested and the California Supreme Court granted review. All of the court briefs have been submitted.