into waterways as part of its fighter jet training operations over the Paradise North area of eastern Oregon. The suit alleged that these releases from aircraft entered waterways and violated the Clean Water Act because the Air Force did not have a permit to do so. The Air Force denied that its operations required a permit in light of an April 20 determination by President Donald J. Trump to exempt for one year the Air Force’s fighter jet training operations in Idaho, Oregon, and Nevada from federal, state, and local requirements respecting the control land abatement of water pollution. The dismissal will minimize any disruption of the Air Force’s training program and save significant time and resources that the litigation would have required.
“Given how critical the Air Force’s training operations are to the nation’s military readiness and national defense, we are gratified to see this case dismissed,” said Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division (ENRD). “Congress granted the President the authority to exempt certain military operations from Clean Water Act requirements, and doing so here ensures that our pilots continue to receive the best training in the world.”
Military aircraft have been training in eastern Oregon since Mountain Home Army Air Field opened in August 1942. The Air Force currently conducts aerial fighter training for aircraft – primarily F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft – and pilots stationed at the base. This aerial flight training takes place within six Military Operation Areas, including the Paradise North desert lands in southeastern Oregon, as part of the Air Force’s ongoing mission to train and equip America’s elite cadre of fighter pilots. The training occurs over an expansive area and may include fighter jets releasing chaff and flares into the atmosphere as practice for defending against RADAR-guided weapons and heat-seeking missiles. For several decades, the Air Force has, at times, used chaff and flares during aerial training at Mountain Home Air Force Base.
Attorneys with ENRD’s Natural Resources Section handled this matter.