Opinion ID: 1797621
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: The 1979 Denial of BDF's Permit Application

Text: The Corps of Engineers issued BDF a cease and desist order in January of 1974, prohibiting further construction of its levee and further development of the property because such construction lacked the § 10 and § 404 permits legally required under the Rivers and Harbors Act and the FWPCA. The Corps allowed BDF to apply for after-the-fact permits in 1975. This application was denied in 1979. During the pendency of the above action, Congress had begun to study the feasibility of the establishment of a national park in Louisiana in August of 1972, and, in 1978, the park was created by statute. All of the evidence in the record supports the finding that the application was denied for reasons unrelated to the existence of or uncertainty over the hurricane levee project. The District Engineer's articulated reasons for his denial of BDF's permit application state the following: I find that denial of the Department of the Army after-the-fact permit prescribed by regulations published in 33 C.F.R. 320 through 329 to Bayou Des Families Development Corporation is based on thorough analysis and evaluation of the various factors enumerated above; that there are reasonable alternatives available that will achieve the purposes for which the work is being constructed; that the proposed work is not in accordance with the overall desires of the public as reflected in the comments of state, Federal, and local agencies and the general public; that the proposed work does not comply with established State and local laws, regulations and codes; that there have been identified significant adverse environmental effects related to the work; that the denial of this permit is consonant with national policy, statutes, and administrative directives; and that on balance the total public interest should best be served by the denial of a Department of the Army after-the-fact permit to Bayou Des Families Development Corporation. The District Engineer's findings of fact in the denial of BDF's application note there were nearby undeveloped nonwetland areas which could have been developed for the same purposes, the BDF project would have had major adverse impacts on Jean Lafitte National Park and on the environment, and the approval of the project would have been in violation of national policy on the preservation of wetlands. The landowners' answers and post trial memoranda in the instant expropriation suits allege the permit was denied because of the opposition by park supporters who wanted to protect and preserve as undevelopable as much of the wetlands as possible which were located in the park protection zone. Dr. Lloyd F. Baehr, Jr., who has worked for the Corps since 1976, and who is presently chief of the permitting unit, testified BDF's permit was denied in 1979 because there was a lack of public need to destroy the wetlands, there was no need for the type of amenities suggested by the proposal, and there were available non wetland alternative sites. The federal district court in Bayou des Families Development Corp. v. United States Corps of Engineers, 541 F.Supp. 1025 (E.D.La.1982) [42] found the Corps' denial of BDF's permit was not arbitrary and capricious and was consistent with the Corps' statutory and regulatory mandate to grant no permit unless it is found to be in the public interest and to evaluate the effects of a proposed project on the wetlands with an eye toward discouraging the unnecessary alteration or destruction of wetlands. The federal district court stated: The Corps evaluated the public comments, the comments of governmental agencies, the data generated by the Corps, and the data presented by BDF and its consultants in reviewing BDF's application. Of key concern to the Corps were the comments from the public and from other federal agencies relating to the environmental effects of the proposed work. The area in question provides for water filtration, assists in maintaining the salinity regime for the Barataria Basin, provides habitat for terrestrial and aquatic fauna, and provides significant detritus export vital to the maintenance and health of Louisiana Gulf fisheries. Development of the area in question and the destruction of almost 2,000 acres of wetlands would result in the loss of wildlife habitat, the loss of water purification and filtration benefits, and have significant adverse impacts on the Barataria Bay fisheries resources due to loss of detritus contribution and habitat. After evaluating the above factors and weighing the public need against the private need for the project, as required by Corps' regulations, the District Engineer concluded that the proposed work would not be in the public interest. Based on the evidence in the administrative record before the Corps at the time it denied plaintiff's permit application on September 17, 1979, the Corps' decision was not arbitrary or capricious, an abuse of discretion, nor otherwise not in accordance with law. The Corps considered all relevant factors. The Corps was required by regulations to consider not only the flood protection aspects of the proposed project but other factors, including water dependence of the project and ecological consequences, effect on wetland water quality, and effects on fish and wildlife habitat. Bayou Des Families, supra, 541 F.Supp. at 1038. Furthermore, in addressing the reason for the Corps' four year delay in acting on BDF's application, the court stated: The Corps' consideration of the impact of possible effluent from plaintiff's proposed sewage treatment plant on the park, and respect for the park Administrator's request that a levee not be constructed within the park boundaries, did not exceed the Corps' statutory mandate to consider the environmental effects of the proposed project, although consideration of those factors may have slowed the processing of BDF's permit application. Id. at 1040 (citation omitted). Additionally, in response to BDF's argument the Corps should have granted its permit for the construction of a levee along alignment D because the Corps had previously indicated in 1972 that it wanted to build its hurricane levee along alignment D or that the Corps itself was obligated to build the hurricane levee along alignment D, the federal district court observed: In 1974 Congress amended the Flood Control Act to require the Corps, in formulating flood control plans, to employ the most economically, socially, and environmentally acceptable means of reducing or preventing flood damages. Even if the Corps did, in mid-1972, propose an alignment similar to that along which plaintiff later began construction of a levee, the Corps was not bound by that proposal. The Corps was, however, required to take subsequently enacted federal legislation, including the FWPCA, the amendment to the Flood Control Act, and the Park Act and regulations, into account in developing a proposal for hurricane protection on the West Bank. Even if the 1972 proposal had passed an earlier cost-benefit analysis, the Corps could not ignore the Congressional policies expressed in subsequent legislation. Thus, the Corps has properly considered subsequent legislation, specifically that legislation relating to environmental protection and to establishment of Jean Lafitte Park, in developing a flood control proposal for the West Bank. Id. at 1041-42 (citations omitted). The fact the Corps' preferred alignment for the hurricane levee in 1972 was along alignment D supports the conclusion BDF's permit application was denied in 1979 not because of the hurricane levee project but for other reasons. The hurricane project had been ongoing since 1965. In 1972, the Corps indicated its desire the hurricane levee be placed along alignment D. An internal memorandum of the Corps filed into evidence by landowners shows the Corps recognized there was no reason to deny BDF's permit application if the Corps's hurricane levee was to be placed along alignment D also. However, between 1972 and 1979, two important events occurred which were totally unrelated to the hurricane levee projectthe passage of the FWPCA amendments with the corresponding growing national concern over the preservation of wetlands and the creation of Jean Lafitte National Park, which included landowners' wetlands in its park protection zone. The Corps was willing to allow its hurricane levee to be built along alignment D in 1972 but was not willing to let BDF build its levee along alignment D in 1979, even though the Corps had earlier recognized the two levees would not be conflicting along such an alignment. It was the intervention of the FWPCA, the concern over preservation of the large area of wetlands, and the desire to preserve the undeveloped nature of the park protection zone of Jean Lafitte Park, and not the existence of or uncertainty over the hurricane levee project, which led to the denial of BDF's permit in 1979. One of the owners of BDF Development Corp., Wilson P. Abraham, testified at trial the existence of Jean Lafitte Park was the reason for the Corps' alleged procrastination on the permit application, and the National Park Service vigorously resisted any idea of developing BDF's property at every meeting on the topic. [43] Dr. Sherwood Gagliano, the witness whom landowners' tendered and the court accepted as an expert in the Corps' permitting process and whom the trial court found to be extremely credible, testified the delay the Corps took in acting on BDF's permit was caused by people interested in preserving the undeveloped nature of the land included in the park protection zone, and that ultimately the permit was denied because of the land's inclusion in the park protection zone. Dr. Gagliano testified numerous times during trial that in his opinion, the park was the deciding factor in the denial of the [BDF] permit. Furthermore, after reviewing various permit denials and grants by the Corps in the general vicinity of landowners' property, Dr. Gagliano testified the main difference between those projects and BDF's project was the fact that BDF's property was included within the boundaries of Jean Lafitte National Park. In the areas where permits for the development of wetlands were granted, no state or national park was in the area of consideration of those permits. Additionally, Dr. Gagliano stated the landowners had a reasonable expectation of developing their property in 1972 because BDF's levee was to follow the Corps' preferred alignment for its hurricane levee, and the only thing which affected their reasonable expectation was the creation of Jean Lafitte National Park. Landowners introduced into evidence, through Dr. Gagliano's testimony, several letters from various organizations which were circulated during the pendency of BDF's permit application and which discussed BDF's permit in relation to the park. Exhibit 127 is a letter from the director of the Louisiana State Parks and Recreation Commission which states that agency conducted an EIS which concluded the BDF levee alignment would be in conflict with the park. Exhibit 128 is a letter from the Superintendent of the Jean Lafitte Park to the regional director of the National Park Service which Dr. Gagliano interpreted as revealing the Superintendent believed he could keep the developers from developing their property, and thus, out of the park protection zone, through use of the § 404 permit process, and, that by doing so, he would keep the value of the property low for purposes of the park's acquisition of it later on. Exhibit 129 is a letter from the same Park Superintendent to the district engineer of the Corps in response to the Corps' request for comments on BDF's application. The letter objects to the permit because of its impact on the park protection zone and the core area of the park. Exhibit 130 is a letter from the Corps to the landowners dated several months prior to the permit denial discussing the comments it had received on the park and recommending BDF withdraw its application because it was likely to be denied. [44] Dr. Gagliano testified this particular letter makes it clear the BDF permit was denied because of the park protection zone. The landowners rely on an internal Corps' memorandum from 1975 for the proposition that the later denial of their permit in 1979 was related to the hurricane levee project. In this memo, introduced into evidence as LO-26, an employee of the Corps states in part: (a) It is apparent that the decision on the issuance of a permit and the decision on the West Bank Hurricane Protection project are closely related. In fact, the decisions should be made in concert. (b) If a decision is made to deny the permit application, it would be inconsistent to propose a Corps levee in the same area. If we propose to build a hurricane levee near the alinement [sic] of the Bayou des Families levee, there is no reason why a permit should not be issued. (c) Strong opposition to issuance of the permit has been expressed by EPS, NMFS, USF & WS, the State Parks and Recreation Commission, and the State Planning Office. It is probable that these same agencies will also oppose a hurricane levee which destroys the wetlands of this area. This memo does not state or imply, as asserted by the landowners, that the BDF application would be denied because of the hurricane levee project. Rather it only explains that if BDF's permit application to construct its own levee along alignment D is denied, it would be inconsistent for the Corps to later seek to build its hurricane levee along alignment D because the same groups which oppose BDF's permit application would also oppose the Corps' placement of a hurricane levee along alignment D for the same reasons. It is clear from the record that BDF's permit application was denied by the Corps in 1979 because of the desire to preserve the wetlands in the park protection zone as undeveloped wetlands and because BDF's permit application did not meet the criteria for the granting of a permit. Thus, any devaluation to the property caused by this permit denial cannot be attributed to the District as it is unrelated to the project for which the District sought to expropriate the property. [45]