Victories
Banning Single Use Plastics
March 2024
Cottonwood won a case against the State of Montana that reversed HB407, a bill passed in 2021 that banned citizens from being able to regulate single use plastics through initiatives, a constitutional right of all Montanans
Defended Montana Constitution and Citizen Ballot Initiatives
February 2024
Cottonwood won a constitutional lawsuit against the state of Montana, challenging SB93. The decision ruled that SB 93, which gave power to the Attorney General to decide whether citizen initiatives can be placed on a ballot, is unconstitutional.
WOLVERINES GET ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT PROTECTIONS
December 2023
The North American wolverine has officially been put on the list of threatened and endangered in the lower 48 states. Federal protections have been extended to wolverines and the service is seeking public comment on their plan until Jan. 29th, 2024.
COTTONWOOD SETTLES CLEAN WATER ACT LAWSUIT AGAINST SPANISH PEAKS RESORT
September 2022
Cottonwood has settled a Clean Water Act lawsuit against Spanish Peaks Mountain Resort. The private ski and golf resort has agreed to replace the torn liner of its sewage holding pond, limit the amount of treated sewage that is used to irrigate its golf course, and fund Gallatin River studies to further clean up the river.
COTTONWOOD WINS INITIATIVE LAWSUIT IN MONTANA SUPREME COURT
March 2022
The Montana Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision that reversed the Montana Attorney General’s determination that a citizen initiative to protect the Gallatin River cannot move forward.
COTTONWOOD MOVES YELLOWSTONE BISON CLOSER TO ROAMING FREELY ON PUBLIC LANDS
March 2022
Cottonwood has secured a court order that requires the federal government to rethink its bison management plan in light of new science.
COTTONWOOD PROTECTS CRITICAL HABITAT FOR THREATENED SPECIES IN U.S. SUPREME COURT
Cottonwood prevailed in a years long court battle that required the federal government to ensure its management plan for Canada lynx was adequate after a high-ranking political appointee was caught unlawfully tampering with the critical habitat designation for the rare cats.
COTTONWOOD PROTECTS THE MOST IMPORTANT GRIZZLY BEAR CORRIDOR IN THE LOWER 48
April 16, 2016
The federal government decided to end domestic sheep grazing in a remote mountain range of southwest Montana in response to Cottonwood’s continued litigation. The grazing was occurring in a vital grizzly bear corridor that resulted in bears being killed. The Secretary of Agriculture tried to completely close the federal research facility to save millions of taxpayer dollars and protect threatened species .
JUDGE RULES FEDS IMPROPERLY REFUSED TO PROTECT WOLVERINES
April 4, 2016
Cottonwood joined a coalition of conservation organizations to challenge the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s refusal to protect imperiled wolverines under the Endangered Species Act. In April 2016, the court held the agency accountable for its decision to discount the best available science about climate impacts on wolverines.
COTTONWOOD PROMPTS ESSENTIAL RECOVERY PLAN FOR ENDANGERED CACTI SPECIES
December 2015
Cottonwood is proud to have catalyzed the creation of a strong recovery plan for the rare Winkler Pincushion and San Rafael cacti of south-central Utah. The Recovery Plan will help ensure adequate regulatory mechanisms are put in place to protect and restore these species.
SWEEPING LAWSUIT WON FOR THE WHITE-TAILED PRAIRIE DOG
Sept. 29, 2014
The court ruled a sweeping victory for white-tailed prairie dogs, protecting this key species in sagebrush ecosystems across southcentral Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah.
SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT WILL RESTORE WATER QUALITY TO NEARLY 40 RIVERS AND STREAMS ACROSS MONTANA
May 5, 2014
Cottonwood Environmental Law Center and Montana River Action settled a lawsuit against the Montana Department of Environmental Quality that requires the agency to update and issue more than 40 expired Clean Water Act permits.
COTTONWOOD SETTLES IMPORTANT GRIZZLY BEAR LAWSUIT
February 3, 2014
This settlement agreement requires the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to analyze impacts of domestic sheep grazing is impacting Yellowstone grizzly bears, in a step closer to Cottonwood’s goal of ending sheep grazing in the Centennial Mountains of Montana and Idaho.
400,000 ACRES OF IMPORTANT CANADA LYNX HABITAT PROTECTED
June 6, 2012
Stopped the Forest Service from opening up previously protected land near Yellowstone National Park to precommercial timber thinning projects, which violated the Endangered Species Act and other laws.
COTTONWOOD STOPS $550 MILLION DOLLAR COAL RAILROAD FROM TAKING RANCHERS’ LAND IN SOUTHEAST MONTANA
December 29, 2011
After more than twenty years of court battles, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals finally rejected plans to allow construction of the Tongue River Railroad, which would have had huge environmental consequences if built.
IMPORTANT LYNX INFORMATION SECURED THROUGH FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT LAWSUIT
August 20, 2010
As part of the settlement agreement, the federal agency agreed to turn over the documents it had previously withheld, which would would be essential in securing protection of critical lynx habitat.
WON SIGNIFICANT ADMINISTRATIVE APPEAL THAT PROTECTS LYNX, GRIZZLIES, AND SENSITIVE PLANT SPECIES
April, 2010
Cottonwood challenged a logging project in the Benchmark area of the Lewis and Clark National Forest that would have destroyed over 750 acres of Canada Lynx and grizzly bear habitat, and potential habitat for sensitive plant species. As a result of the appeal, the Forest Service stopped this project.