South Dakota v. Ubbelohde
United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
330 F.3d 1014 (2003)
- Written by Curtis Parvin, JD
Facts
The United States Army Corps of Engineers (the corps) (defendant) managed the Missouri River under the Flood Control Act of 1944 (the act). The river flowed through seven states from Montana to Missouri. The act required the corps to balance several interests in managing the river, including, in diminishing order of priority, flood control, irrigation, navigation, power, domestic and sanitary purposes, wildlife, and recreation. The corps created the Missouri River Main Stem Reservoir System Reservoir Regulation Manual (Master Manual) with public input. The publicly available Master Manual outlined the corps’ approach and how it considered and treated the various competing interests in the waters of the rivers and associated reservoirs. After a period of drought, the corps implemented a preestablished plan in which it would use one of six reservoirs, rotated annually, to maintain navigation on the river. In 2002, the corps selected the reservoir of Lake Oahe, South Dakota. South Dakota (plaintiff) objected, claiming the corps’ action was arbitrary and capricious and would irreparably harm a planned fish-spawning operation needed for the lake’s operation. South Dakota sought and obtained a preliminary injunction in the United States District Court for the District of South Dakota prohibiting the corps from using the reservoir as proposed. [Editor’s Note: Lt. Col. Kurt Ubbelohde, a Corps district engineer, was the first named defendant.] As the corps tried to replace Lake Oahe with other reservoirs, affected states successfully sought injunctive relief to stop the corps from proceeding. Meanwhile, after being denied the right to intervene in the South Dakota action, Nebraska (plaintiff) sought and obtained an injunction in the United States District Court for the District of Nebraska, directing the corps to comply with the Master Manual and proceed with the original 2002 operating plan to release water for navigation. The corps appealed each injunction, and Nebraska appealed the South Dakota court’s decision to preclude its intervention there. The United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit consolidated the appeals.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Arnold, J.)
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