Ecological Rights Foundation v. Hot Line Construction, Inc.
Opinion
Trial Court Opinion
I.
BACKGROUND
A. SITE INSPECTIONS PRIOR TO LITIGATION
On February 20, 2020, prior to Plaintiffs filing a complaint, Plaintiffs and defendant SCE executed a written agreement setting forth certain confidentiality obligations and the terms and conditions under which defendant SCE would voluntarily permit Plaintiffs to conduct four site inspections. Dkt. 28-2, Declaration of Brian Orion (“Orion Decl.”), ¶ 21; Dkt. 30-1, Suppl. Declaration of Brian Orion (“Suppl. Orion Decl.”), ¶ 3. On March 8, 2020, in advance of any site inspections, defendant SCE voluntarily gave Plaintiffs facility storm water management plans to assist them in conducting the anticipated inspections. Dkt 28-10, Declaration of J. Tom Boer (“Boer Decl.”), ¶ 5.
On March 10, 2020, Plaintiffs conducted site inspections of three SCE facilities and obtained storm water and sediment samples at each of these facilities. Orion Decl., ¶ 22. Plaintiffs could not proceed with inspecting the fourth facility due to a lack of rain. Id., ¶ 23.
B. EFFORTS TO MEET AND CONFER
On May 29, 2020, Plaintiffs initiated this action by filing a Complaint against defendant Hot Line Construction, Inc. for violations of the Clean…