Friends of the Kings River v. County of Fresno

The California Court of Appeal affirmed the denial of a challenge to Fresno County’s approval of an aggregate mine. The mine, along with associated processing facilities, is planned for a 1,500-acre site in the Sierra Nevada foothills. The court rejected claims that the project’s environmental impact report (EIR) prepared under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) was inadequate. Among the rejected contentions was the petitioner’s argument against the EIR’s assertion that the project would supply construction materials to satisfy “tremendous unmet need for aggregate in Fresno County.” The EIR said the project would result in a reduction of vehicle miles traveled and reduce greenhouse gas emissions because the project’s customers would otherwise have to travel approximately 120 miles to obtain the materials. The court found that substantial evidence supported the EIR’s conclusions.