Klein v. Regents of the University of California

Petitioners alleged that the University’s approval of certain student housing developments, the West Village Expansion and the Orchard Park Redevelopment, violated the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). The petitioners claimed that the project’s Environmental Impact Report (EIR) was insufficient, and thus the agency’s certification was not based on substantial evidence. The project EIR included the planned purchase of carbon credits and offsets to reduce emissions, although the plaintiffs did not critique this specifically. The petitioners claimed that the report failed to consider cumulative impacts on biological resources, greenhouse gas emissions, and mitigation alternatives. The Alameda County Superior Court denied the petitioners’ petition for a writ of mandate on the grounds that the EIR’s discussion of environmental impacts of alternatives was sufficient, as was its consideration of greenhouse gas and biological resource factors.