Ninth Circuit Puts San Francisco Bay Tidal Wetlands Case on Hold

Whether tidal wetlands and ditches fall under Clean Water Act jurisdiction will be left unresolved for now after an appeals court paused a case Wednesday that is expected to address the issue if it eventually proceeds.

The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit granted the Trump administration’s motion to stay US v. Sweeney, an appeal of a district court ruling that found landowner and sailor John Sweeney violated the Clean Water Act when he built a levee around Point Buckler Island in a tributary of San Francisco Bay.

With little explanation, the appeals court order, signed ...