Barclay v. U.S. Army Corps Engineers

2008 DNH 037
CourtDistrict Court, D. New Hampshire
DecidedFebruary 14, 2008
Docket06-CV-368-SM
StatusPublished

This text of 2008 DNH 037 (Barclay v. U.S. Army Corps Engineers) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. New Hampshire primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Barclay v. U.S. Army Corps Engineers, 2008 DNH 037 (D.N.H. 2008).

Opinion

Barclay v. U.S. Army Corps Engineers 06-CV-368-SM 02/14/08 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

DISTRICT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE

Huntington Barclay, et a l ., Plaintiffs

v. Civil No. 06-CV-368-SM Opinion No. 2008 DNH 037 The United States Army Corps of Engineers; L t . General Carl A Strock; Col. Curtis Phalken; and Motorsports Holdings. L L C , Defendants

O R D E R

Plaintiffs are owners of property in and around the town of

Tamworth, New Hampshire. They bring this action seeking a

judicial declaration that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (the

"Corps") violated Section 404 of the Clean Water Act when it

granted Motorsports Holdings a permit to place fill material

within wetland areas on its land in Tamworth. Motorsports

Holdings sought the permit to disturb approximately 0.73 acres of

wetlands as part of its plan to construct a motorsports country

club with an associated 3.1 mile road course on a 251-acre site

in Tamworth.

Interestingly, plaintiffs' challenge is not related to any

potential adverse effects the proposed facility might have on

water quality in the area. Instead, plaintiffs complain that the Corps approved a noise limit on the project that was excessive

and at odds with the recommendations of the Corps' own

consultant. Consequently, say plaintiffs, the decision amounted

to an abuse of discretion and renders the Corps' issuance of the

permit arbitrary and capricious.

Pending before the court are the parties' cross-motions for

summary judgment. For the reasons set forth below, defendants'

motions are granted and plaintiffs' motion is denied.

Standard of Review

I. Summary J u d g m e n t .

When ruling on a party's motion for summary judgment, the

court must "view the entire record in the light most hospitable

to the party opposing summary judgment, indulging all reasonable

inferences in that party's favor." Griqqs-Rvan v. Sm i t h . 904

F.2d 112, 115 (1st Cir. 1990). Summary judgment is appropriate

when the record reveals "no genuine issue as to any material fact

and . . . the moving party is entitled to a judgment as a matter

of law." Fed. R. Civ. P. 5 6 ( c ) . In this context, "a fact is

■'material' if it potentially affects the outcome of the suit and

a dispute over it is 'genuine' if the parties' positions on the

issue are supported by conflicting evidence." Int'l Ass'n of

2 Machinists & Aerospace Workers v. Winship Green Nursing C t r . , 103

F.3d 196, 199-200 (1st Cir. 1996) (citations omitted).

Here, the parties agree that there are no genuinely disputed

material facts. The sole question presented is a legal one:

Whether the Corps' decision to issue Motorsports Holdings a

permit under the Clean Water Act was "arbitrary, capricious, an

abuse of discretion or otherwise not in accordance with

applicable law." 5 U.S.C. § 7 0 6 ( 2 ) (A). As the court of appeals

for this circuit has observed:

the task of a court reviewing agency action under the [Administrative Procedures Act's] "arbitrary and capricious" standard, 5 U.S.C. § 706(2), is to determine whether the agency has considered the relevant factors and articulated a rational connection between the facts found and the choice made. If the agency decision was based on a consideration of the relevant factors and there has not been a clear error of judgment, then the agency decision was not arbitrary or capricious.

Dubois v. U.S. Dep't of A g r i c u l t u r e . 102 F.3d 1273, 1284-85 (1st

Cir. 1996) (citations and internal punctuation omitted). The

"arbitrary and capricious" standard is, then, a highly

deferential one, and the Corps' decision is entitled to a

"presumption of regularity." Citizens to Preserve Overton Park.

Inc. v. V o l p e , 401 U.S. 402, 416 (1971). See also Adams v .

United States E P A . 38 F.3d 43, 49 (1st Cir. 1994) ("Under the

3 APA, the applicable standard of review is whether the EPA's

action was ■'arbitrary, capricious, an abuse of discretion, or

otherwise not in accordance with law.' A court should not set

aside agency actions as arbitrary and capricious unless the

actions lack a rational basis. The scope of review under the

■'arbitrary and capricious' standard is therefore narrow, and a

court should not substitute its judgment for that of the

agency.") (citations omitted).

Background

In October of 2003, Motorsports Holdings ("Motorsports") met

with state and federal authorities to discuss its proposal to

build a motorsports facility, including a 3.1 mile European-style

road course, in Tamworth, New Hampshire. The site of the

proposed facility is "not in a populated residential area, but

rather along R t . 25, a moderately heavily traveled state road by

commercial vehicles, logging trucks, etc." Environmental

Assessment and Statement of Findings (the "EA/SOF"), Admin. Rec.,

vol. 1, page 131. Additionally, "the site abuts undeveloped

land, with the exception of the Lakes Region Fire Apparatus

Facility to the north and the local town's transfer station to

the west. Other nearby commercial/industrial uses include: an

4 oil storage depot, a private garage facility, on-going logging

operations and on-going gravel pit operations." Id.

Initially, Motorsports had hoped the Corps would consider

the project eligible for evaluation under the streamlined New

Hampshire State Programmatic General Permit ("NHSPGP")

procedures, rather than the more comprehensive individual permit

process. But, in January of 2004, the Corps concluded that due

to potential impacts on local aquifers and in the public

interest, the project would not be considered under the NHSPGP.

Instead, Motorsports would be required to submit an application

to the Corps for a permit under section 404 of the Clean Water

Act, authorizing it to discharge fill material into the 0.73

acres of wetlands located on the 251-acre property.

As part of its application for a discharge permit under the

Clean Water Act, Motorsports outlined its proposed operating plan

for the facility. Under that plan, the facility would be open

approximately 200 days each year (April 15 to October 31), seven

days a week, from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. On Sundays, however, no

vehicles would be permitted on the track until after 11:00 a.m.

Among other things, Motorsports proposed to "follow the standards

and requirements as outlined in Section 11 - ■'Technical & Safety'

5 and Section 12 - ■'Sound Control' of the Sports Car Club of

America's 2005 General Rules and Specifications." Admin. Rec.,

vol. 6, page 10. As to noise emissions, however, Motorsports

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