Case: National Parks Conservation Association v. U.S. Department of the Interior
2:26-cv-04002 | U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
Filed Date: April 15, 2026
Case Ongoing
Clearinghouse coding in progress
Case Summary
(This summary is temporary while we research the case.)
The National Parks Conservation Association, a nonprofit organization with nearly 1.96 million members and supporters, filed this complaint on April 15, 2026, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California against the U.S. Department of the Interior, Secretary Doug Burgum, the National Park Service (NPS), and NPS officials in their official capacities. The complaint centers on the Colosseum Mine, located within Mojave National Preserve in California, where mining ceased in 1992–1993 and where Congress transferred jurisdiction from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) to the NPS following the Preserve's establishment under the California Desert Protection Act of 1994. Between 2021 and 2024, NPS repeatedly directed Australian company Dateline Resources Ltd. (Dateline) to cease unauthorized operations, rescinded a 1995 temporary authorization, and demanded over $213,000 in restoration costs for activities that damaged Preserve resources. However, in April 2025, NPS abruptly reversed course by issuing letters that purported to recognize Dateline's valid existing rights, rescinded prior cease-and-desist orders and damage demands, and permitted operations to proceed based on an expired 1985 BLM-approved environmental review—all without a required NPS-approved plan of operations, a BLM validity determination, or environmental review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). NPCA asserts three causes of action under the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), alleging violations of the Mining in the Parks Act, the California Desert Protection Act, and NEPA, and seeks vacatur of the April 2025 decision, declaratory and injunctive relief, and attorneys' fees.
People
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73194892/parties/national-parks-conservation-association-v-us-department-of-the-interior/
Snyder, Christina A. (California)
Greif, Gabriel F (California)
Loarie, Gregory Cahill (California)
Documents in the Clearinghouse
Docket
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/73194892/national-parks-conservation-association-v-us-department-of-the-interior/
Last updated May 13, 2026, 4:57 p.m.
Case Details
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Special Collection(s):
Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government
Key Dates
Filing Date: April 15, 2026
Case Ongoing: Yes
Case Details
Other Dockets:
Central District of California 2:26-cv-04002
Available Documents:
Case Summary of National Parks Conservation Association v. U.S. Department of the Interior, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, http://www.dev.clearinghouse.net/case/48117/.