WE WORK WONDERS for NATURAL WONDERS
When an environmental plight calls for lean and hard-hitting legal muscle, conservation groups, Native American Tribes, and concerned citizens call on us. Advocates for the West boosts the strength of our partners by providing free legal representation in federal court—advancing the mission of every client by putting the power of law and science on the side of the West.
Since our founding in 2003, Advocates for the West has provided free legal support to our partners with an 85% record of success.
Smart and efficient, our attorneys work with partners to develop strategic cases aimed at enforcing the nation’s bedrock environmental laws. We handle an extensive caseload with an impressive win record.
We work wonders to perpetuate natural wonders. We win for the West.
Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge Grazing Mismanagement
Case: WildEarth Guardians and Western Watersheds Project v. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
May 14, 2024 — Advocates for the West filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) for failing to ensure cattle grazing on the Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge in Montana’s Centennial Valley does not harm wildlife. The Refuge was established by President Franklin Roosevelt in 1935 to protect the largest wetlands complex…
Crooked River Water Rights
Case: Upper Crooked River Conservationists and Shotgun Ranch, LLC v. Water Resources Department of the State of Oregon and Water Resources Commission of the State of Oregon
March 27, 2024 — Representing WaterWatch of Oregon, Advocates for the West filed a motion to intervene in a state court water rights case to defend the Oregon Water Resources Department’s decision to grant a permit to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) allowing the release of water from Prineville Reservoir to support fish in the…
Owyhee Military Airspace Expansion
Case: Oregon Natural Desert Association, Friends of the Nevada Wilderness, and Idaho Conservation League v. U.S. Department of the Air Force
January 22, 2024 — Advocates for the West filed suit challenging the Air Force’s decision to expand and intensify its military trainings using F-15 fighter jets over Wilderness Areas and Wild and Scenic Rivers in the Owyhee Canyonlands of Idaho, Oregon, and Nevada, threatening key sage-grouse strongholds, as well as bighorn sheep and other wildlife….
Air Force Owyhee Airspace Optimization: FOIA Records Request
Case: Idaho Conservation League v. U.S. Air Force
October 10, 2023 — Advocates for the West filed suit under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to compel Mountain Home Air Force Base to release public records as required by law. The records relate to the Air Force’s proposal to expand and intensify military aircraft trainings over the Owyhee Canyonlands of southwestern Idaho, southeastern Oregon,…
Bureau of Land Management Rangeland Degradation
Case: Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility and Western Watersheds Project v. Debra Haaland, Tracy Stone-Manning, and U.S. Bureau of Land Management
September 13, 2023 — Advocates for the West filed suit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for its failure to abide by the Federal Land Policy and Management Act to determine the prioritization and timing of environmental analyses for livestock grazing allotments on public…
Big Creek Airstrips
Case: Wilderness Watch, Great Old Broads for Wilderness, Friends of the Clearwater, and Friends of the Bitterroot v. Linda Jackson, Mary Farnsworth, and United States Forest Service
June 20, 2023 — Advocates for the West filed a lawsuit challenging the Forest Service’s unlawful decisions to improve and expand four locations in Idaho’s Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness for aircraft landings and to permit hobby pilots to use these sites for motorized recreation. The Central Idaho Wilderness Act, which designated the River…
Grand View Feedlot Clean Water Act Enforcement
Case: Snake River Waterkeeper v. J.R. Simplot Company and Simplot Livestock
May 9, 2023 — Advocates for the West filed a lawsuit against the J.R. Simplot Company and Simplot Livestock Company for years of unlawful pollution discharges from the Grand View Feedlot into the Snake River in violation of the Clean Water Act (CWA). The Snake River is a source of water as well as an important site for…
Galena Mine Clean Water Act Enforcement
Case: Idaho Conservation League v. U.S. Silver
March 30, 2023 — Representing the Idaho Conservation League (ICL), Advocates for the West filed a Clean Water Act (CWA) citizen enforcement suit against mining company U.S. Silver for unlawful discharges of arsenic, lead, and other pollutants at the Galena Complex Mine in north Idaho. The pollution into the South Fork Coeur d’Alene River and…
Bonneville Power Administration: Reserves Distribution
Case: Idaho Conservation League, Great Old Broads for Wilderness, and Idaho Rivers United v. Bonneville Power Administration
March 15, 2024 — Advocates for the West filed our opening brief in this case, challenging BPA for neglecting its duties under the Northwest Power Act to provide “equitable treatment” for fish and wildlife. In fiscal year 2022, BPA made record revenues from the sale of power, including from the lower Snake River dams, leading…
Bonneville Power Administration: FOIA Request for Kintama Records
Case: Advocates for the West v. Bonneville Power Administration
December 15, 2022 — Advocates for the West filed a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) suit against the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA) to compel the federal agency to produce certain records as required by law. The records concern BPA’s relationship with Canadian research company Kintama Research Services. Over the last decade, BPA has funded some of Kintama’s…
