Western Watersheds Project, et al v. Ester McCullough, et al

  1. July 18, 2023

    9th Circ. Upholds BLM's Nevada Lithium Mine Approval

    The Ninth Circuit upheld Monday the Bureau of Land Management's approval of the Thacker Pass lithium mine project, rejecting arguments by environmentalists, a Native American tribe and a Nevada rancher that the government hasn't properly considered the environmental and cultural impacts of what could be the nation's largest lithium mine.

  2. May 08, 2023

    Trade Groups Stress Need For US Lithium Mine To 9th Circ.

    Industry groups have told the Ninth Circuit the Thacker Pass lithium mine will fill a critical need in the U.S. economy as the government prioritizes a transition toward electric vehicles, asking it to uphold the project's approval amid an appeal from environmentalists, a Native American tribe and a Nevada rancher.

  3. May 02, 2023

    Feds, Lithium Co. Urge 9th Circ. To Uphold Mine Project OK

    The federal government and a mining company constructing a lithium mine in Nevada's Thacker Pass urged the Ninth Circuit to affirm a lower court's decision to largely uphold the lithium extraction plans, saying the U.S. Bureau of Land Management is working on remand to fix a narrow error identified by the district court.

  4. March 23, 2023

    Tribe Urges 9th Circ. To Strip Nevada Mine Approval

    A Native American tribe says the U.S. Bureau of Land Management failed to take the requisite "hard look" at impacts stemming from an open-pit lithium mine in Nevada, urging the Ninth Circuit to undo the federal government's approval of the Thacker Pass project.

  5. March 02, 2023

    9th Circ. Won't Block Lithium Mine Construction Amid Appeals

    The Ninth Circuit rejected a Nevada rancher and conservation groups' emergency request for the court to halt the Thacker Pass lithium mine's construction, amid their consolidated appeal of a Nevada federal court decision that largely upheld a permit for the project.