The National Wildlife Federation v. Brock Adams

This is an appeal from an order of the district court denying appellants’ motion for a preliminary injunction to restrain further construction of two highway segments approved for federal funding in connection with the Trident Submarine Base located in Bangor, Kitsap County, Washington. The issues on appeal are whether the appellees complied with provisions of: (1) Executive Order 11, 990, 42 Fed.Reg. 26,961 (1977), which is titled “Protection of Wetlands”; (2) the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. §§ 4321-4369 ; and, (3) section 608 of the Military Construction Act of 1975, Pub.L.No. 93-552, 88 Stat. 1745 , 1763 (1974), which authorizes the use of federal funds to assist communities near the Bangor Trident site in meeting the cost of providing increased services and facilities for residents of the area. The district court found that appellees had complied with all the statutory requirements. The district court refused to enjoin the construction, concluding that appellants had not shown a probability of success on the merits, and that the public interest would suffer far more serious harm if an injunction were issued than would appellants if it were not. We…