City of Baldwin Park v. City of Irwindale

The Los Angeles County Superior Court vacated Irwindale’s certification of the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) for a materials recovery facility. The City of Baldwin Park challenged the City of Irwindale’s certification of the project’s Environmental Impact Report under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The City of Baldwin Park alleged that the project description was inconsistent and incomplete for various reasons, including that the proposal’s reliance on carbon offsets to reduce emissions was not explained in proper detail. The Superior Court found that the proposal failed to include information ensuring that purchased credits would be of sufficient quality to reduce project emissions. Furthermore, the court found that the proposal was “inadequate as to truck fueling operations; … transportation energy impacts; and … health risks associated with the Project's emissions of [reactive organic gases], [nitrogen oxides] and ozone.” The court ordered Irwindale to “take all steps necessary to bring the EIR into compliance with CEQA.” The court did not grant the petition in full, rejecting the plaintiff’s other claims, including that “Irwindale prejudicially abused its discretion in its discussion of the Project's consistency with Irwindale's land use plans and policies.”