Earthjustice has asked the court to halt construction of a U.S. military base until the Department of Defense complies with laws dealing with preservation.
The panel affirmed in part, reversed in part and remanded for further proceedings in an action brought by environmental groups and individuals who challenged a decision by the U.S. Department of Defense to construct a new military base on Okinawa, Japan.
Earthjustice has been involved for more than a decade in legal efforts to protect the Okinawa dugong and Henoko Bay, one of the dugong’s last remaining habitats.
A U.S. base expansion in Okinawa, Japan, would pave over some of the last remaining habitat for critically endangered Okinawa dugongs, ancient cultural icons for the Okinawan people and marine mammals related to manatees. The dugong is listed as an object of national cultural significance under Japan’s Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties, the…
