A San Diego County water district should have completed an environmental study before approving an agreement to provide recycled water to operators of a proposed landfill, the Fourth District Court of Appeal has ruled.
Even though Olivenhain Municipal Water District was not the "lead agency" for review of the landfill itself, the district was a "responsible agency" with obligations under the California Environmental Quality Act. The district did not fulfill those obligations with a contract that placed CEQA compliance in the hands of the landfill operator, the court ruled.