Appeals court hears dispute over environmental group’s standing to challenge San Juan County permit

Christina Sloan, counsel for Living Rivers, told the Utah Court of Appeals that the nonprofit and its members have statutory standing under the County Land Use Development and Management Act (CLEDMA) to appeal a conditional use permit San Juan County issued to Old Town LLC. "We're here today to talk about statutory standing which is apparently a hot topic this summer," Sloan said, arguing the 2020 amendments and controlling case law permit associational standing when an organization and its members allege distinct, personal injuries.

The question matters, Sloan said, because members who live in northern San Juan County and rely on the Mill Creek Watershed for drinking water, irrigation and stock watering could face contamination from the proposed campground, which the appellant says places campsites along the creek and allows vehicle crossings through the stream. Sloan highlighted affidavit evidence and organizational investments (monitoring equipment, stream gauges and watershed studies) that she said would be rendered useless if the project causes pollution. "There's absolutely no capacity for enforcement" in the remote area, she told the court.

Old Town LLC and San Juan County disputed that showing. Amy Walker, counsel for the landowner and permit holder, said the harms alleged are generalized and emphasized statutory and precedent limits on standing, arguing the 2020 amendments narrowed who may appeal land-use decisions. "The record is too unclear to identify which members have the particularized interest that would confer standing on the organization," Walker said, noting the district court reviewed the administrative record and found the asserted injuries insufficiently particularized.

San Juan County’s attorney, Jens Nielsen, urged caution against a broad rule that would let nonresidents or distant interests manufacture private injuries to block local land uses, stressing the county’s efforts to impose permit conditions addressing human waste, fire safety and crossings. Nielsen pointed to the county's size and common-law property rights, saying the record estimated roughly 160 users of the property in a year and warning against overburdening local permitting.

In rebuttal, Sloan reiterated that Living Rivers supplied evidence showing specific affected members and documented organizational expenditures tied to the Mill Creek Watershed, and asked the court to reverse the district court’s dismissal for lack of standing. The panel said it would take the matter under advisement and issue a written decision.

The Court of Appeals did not rule from the bench. The next procedural step is the court’s written opinion, which the judges said will be issued when their deliberations are complete.