Friends of Cuyamaca Valley v. Lake Cuyamaca Recreation & Park District
Opinion
Opinion
Todd, J.
The Friends of Cuyamaca Valley (Friends), a citizens group, appeals from a judgment denying its petition for a writ of mandate to compel the Lake Cuyamaca Recreation and Park District (District) to make an environmental assessment under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (Pub. Resources Code, § 21000 et seq.) with respect to the 1992-1993 duck hunting season. We reject arguments by the District and the State of California, by and through the California Department of Fish and Game (Department), that the-appeal should be dismissed as moot. We further conclude that the Department is the lead agency under the CEQA and as such has the responsibility for making required environmental assessments. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment.
Facts
The District was established by the State of California in 1961. (Stats. 1961, ch. 1654, § 1, p. 3609.) It was empowered to:
In December 1966, the District entered into a cooperative agreement with the Department, in which the Department, at its sole expense, agreed to develop the Lake Cuyamaca Public Fishing Area and the District agreed to operate and manage the state-leased land and facilities as “a public fishing and…