Azusa Land Reclamation Co. v. Main San Gabriel Basin Watermaster

I

Introduction

In view of the length and complexity of the opinion, we deem it necessary to give an expansive preview of the subject matter in the introduction.

This matter came to this court initially when Azusa Land Reclamation Company, Inc., filed a “petition for writ of mandate joined with request for stay or, alternatively, appellant’s opening brief joined with petition for writ of supersedeas and application for expedited appeal. . . .” On October 11, 1996, this court issued an order requesting respondents to file a response to the petition of appellant. Following the filing of the response, this court issued an order denying the petition for writ of supersedeas and further ordering the filing of a respondents’ brief and permitting the filing of a reply brief by appellant.

The Main San Gabriel Groundwater Basin (the Basin) is an underground reservoir that supplies the water needs of approximately 1,000,000 Southern Californians and is a vital link in California’s statewide water planning. The Legislature, observing that municipal solid waste landfills located in empty sand and gravel quarries atop the Basin are believed to have contributed to the pollution of…