California Appeals Court Upholds Sonoma County Well Permit Amendments

A California appellate panel ruled that Sonoma County did not breach the public trust doctrine when it revised its groundwater well permitting rules, overturning a lower court decision.

A three-judge panel of the California Court of Appeal's First Appellate District held that Sonoma County's 2023 amendment to its groundwater well-permit ordinance did not violate the public trust doctrine, thereby reversing a prior trial-court ruling. The court also upheld the lower court's determination that the county had not presented substantial evidence to justify exemptions from a CEQA review, though it offered no guidance on the appropriate CEQA process.

The ordinance, crafted after extensive input from public agencies, scientists, conservation groups and community members, aims to safeguard the Russian River, which supports vulnerable salmon and steelhead populations. Russian Riverkeeper and the California Coastkeeper Alliance had sought a writ of mandate to invalidate the amendments, claiming they fell short of doctrinal and environmental standards. The appellate decision leaves the ordinance in force and sends the case back for further proceedings on the CEQA issue. Associate Justices Tara Desautels, Marla Miller and James Richman authored the opinion, and neither Sonoma County officials nor the environmental nonprofits responded to comment requests.