Calvert Cliffs Coordinating Committee v US Atomic Energy Commission,

449 F2d 1109 (DC Cir. 1971)

Facts:

Plaintiff citizens' group filed suit against defendant United States Atomic Energy Commission
(AEC), alleging that the commission's regulations did not satisfy the requirements of the
National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C.S. § 4321 et seq. NEPA, like so much
other reform legislation of the last 40 years, is cast in terms of a general mandate and broad
delegation of authority to new and old administrative agencies. It takes the major step of
requiring all federal agencies to consider values of environmental preservation in their spheres of
activity, and it prescribes certain procedural measures to ensure that those values are in fact fully
respected. AEC, on the other hand, contends that the vagueness of the NEPA mandate and
delegation leaves much room for discretion and that the rules challenged by petitioners fall well
within the broad scope of the Act.

Issue:

Whether or not the AEC's regulations satisfy the requirements of NEPA?

Held:

No. The court determined that the AEC's rules governing consideration of environmental issues
had to be revised because NEPA required an exercise of substantive discretion which would
protect the environment "to the fullest extent possible" and the commission's rules did not do so.
The court found: (1) that the AEC's rule stating that the hearing board need not consider
environmental factors unless affirmatively raised was not proper under NEPA and that
environmental factors had to be considered; (2) that the absence of a timetable for NEPA
compliance did not justify the AEC's delay in adopting NEPA rules; (3) that the hearing board
could not merely rely on other agencies' performance of environmental standards, which allowed
abdication and did not follow a balancing analysis required by NEPA; thus, the AEC had to
conduct its own independent evaluation; and (4) that the hearing board had to consider
environmental factors in issuing operating permits, even if a construction permit had been issued
prior to NEPA compliance requirements.