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OPINION
Before VAN OOSTERHOUT, BROWNING and SNEED, Circuit Judges.
SNEED, Circuit Judge:
This is an appeal from an action which sought a declaratory judgment that certain coal leases entered into between Westmoreland Resources and the Crow Tribe of Indians and approved by the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) of the Department of the Interior were invalid and which further sought to enjoin strip mining operations thereunder. Plaintiffs (appellants herein) were individuals living on the “Crow Ceded Area” in Montana and Friends of the Earth. Defendants were the Crow Tribe of Indians, Westmoreland Resources, Secretary of the Interior, the Commissioner of the BIA, the Superintendent of the Crow Agency of the BIA, the Director of the United States Geological Survey (USGS), and the Area Mining Supervisor of the Conservation Division of the USGS.
The land involved in the present controversy is within the Crow Ceded Area, which was originally part of the Crow reservation but which was ceded back to the United States under a 1904 agreement. The lands were opened to homesteaders in 1909, but only surface interests could be acquired by homestead. Certain of the original individual plaintiff-appellants are successors in interest to persons who obtained title through homestead to portions of the Crow Ceded Area.
In 1970, as part of a program to develop coal reserves in the Crow Ceded Area, the Crow Tribe granted two prospecting permits, including options to lease, to Westmoreland. The latter exercised the options in June, 1972 and by means of two agreements — covering 16,130.53 acres and 14,745.92 acres respectively— leased the coal rights in the entire 30,-876.45 acres there designated for a term of ten years and as long thereafter as coal is produced in paying quantities. At this time the BIA, which had approved the permits and the leases, had prepared no environmental impact statement (EIS) or other environmental analysis.
On June 15, 1972, the day after the leases were approved, Westmoreland entered into contracts with four mid-western utility companies to supply some 77,000,000 tons of coal over a twenty-year period, to begin July 1, 1974. In November, 1972 Westmoreland filed an application with the USGS for approval of a mining plan covering operations for five years on some 770 acres of the leased land. The surface of this area has been acquired by Westmoreland, while most of the remaining acreage is owned by others, including appellants herein. Upon obtaining consent from the USGS to engage in pre-mining activities, Westmoreland began construction of surface facilities required for coal mining.
The BIA issued a draft EIS in October, 1973, and public hearings were held the following month. The final EIS— which was addressed only to the initial mining plan — was submitted to the Council on Environmental Quality in January, 1974, and this action was filed the following month.
The plaintiffs’ complaint sets forth four claims. With respect to the plaintiffs’ first, third, and fourth claims the court below denied the plaintiffs’ request for a preliminary injunction and granted defendants’ motion for summary judgment. Following a later hearing, the court also denied relief on plaintiffs’ second claim and entered judgment thereon in favor of defendants. We reverse as to the first and second claims, remand to the district court for entry of an order which pertains to the subject matter of the first and second claims and is described more fully at the close of this opinion, and affirm as to the third and fourth claims. A more specific description of these claims is as follows:
Plaintiffs in their first claim contended that the prospecting permits and coal leases were invalid in that their approval in the absence of an EIS violated the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 42 U.S.C. § 4321 et seq. The trial court held that this claim was subject to summary judgment because (1) the approval of the prospecting permits did not constitute “major federal actions” within the meaning of NEPA, 42 U.S.C. § 4332(C); (2) NEPA was not intended to be applied retroactively, so that the Tenth Circuit decision in Davis v. Morton, 469 F.2d 593 (10th Cir. 1972), reversing the court below and holding that an EIS was required for leases on Indian lands, should not invalidate the leases here, particularly where the defendants had relied on the district court opinion in their actions; and (3) the federal defendants had issued an EIS and therefore have complied with NEPA; and (4) plaintiffs were barred by laches.
Plaintiffs in their second claim asserted that the final EIS was inadequate, not only in content but in scope, since Westmoreland had contract commitments for coal deliveries spanning twenty years and had leased 30,876 acres of land, whereas the EIS dealt only with a mining plan which covered but five years and 770 acres. The court, in ordering that judgment be entered in favor of defendants, held (1) that the final EIS met all the requirements of NEPA; (2) that because the substance of plaintiffs’ claims were before the approving authority as a part of the EIS, it was not deficient; and (3) that plaintiffs lacked standing to challenge the sufficiency of the EIS in that they were beyond the zone of interests to be protected by NEPA, since the Secretary of the Interior in approving the leases in his fiduciary capacity was required by the Act to consider only environmental impacts which might adversely affect the Indians.
Plaintiffs’ third claim, that the leases were invalid since they violated certain regulations of the BIA, was held subject to summary judgment on the grounds that plaintiffs (1) lacked standing to sue on this issue; (2) failed to exhaust available administrative remedies; and (3) were barred by laches.
The court also granted summary judgment against plaintiffs on their fourth claim, that the leases were invalid since the United States, rather than the Crow Tribe owned the coal affected by the leases. The court reasoned that (1) none of the plaintiffs had a colorable claim to the leased coal rights and hence none had the personal stake necessary for standing; (2) even if plaintiffs had standing, litigation to determine the ownership of the coal rights was barred by sovereign immunity; and (3) the Crow Tribe did in fact own the coal rights.
We will discuss the first and second claims together; Thereafter the third and fourth claims will be treated separately. To simplify our presentation no attempt will be made to deal with each and every position taken by the lower court; rather our discussion is directed to, and organized around, only those issues which we believe are necessary to the proper disposition of these claims.
I. First and Second Claims.
A. Preliminary Questions:
Standing and Laches.
(1) Standing.
Appellants base their standing to sue on § 10 of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA), 5 U.S.C. § 702, which provides:
A person suffering legal wrong because of agency action, or adversely affected or aggrieved by agency action within the meaning of a relevant statute, is entitled to judicial review thereof.
The Supreme Court has held that persons have standing to seek judicial review of federal agency action under § 10 where they allege that the challenged action has caused them “injury in fact” to an interest “arguably within the zone of interests to be protected or regulated” by the statute which was allegedly violated. Data Processing Service v. Camp, 397 U.S. 150, 90 S.Ct. 827, 25 L.Ed.2d 184 (1970); Barlow v. Collins, 397 U.S. 159, 90 S.Ct. 832, 25 L.Ed.2d 192 (1970). Injuries of a noneconomic nature to widely-shared aesthetic and environmental interests, as well as economic injuries, can amount to an “injury in fact” sufficient for standing under § 10. Sierra Club v. Morton, 405 U.S. 727, 734, 92 S.Ct. 1361, 31 L.Ed.2d 636 (1972), cited with approval in United States v. SCRAP, 412 U.S. 669, 689, 93 S.Ct. 2405, 37 L.Ed.2d 254 (1973). Appellants here allege injury to both environmental and economic interests which are within the “zone of interests” to be protected by NEPA. United States v. SCRAP, supra, 412 at 686 n. 13, 93 S.Ct. 2405; cf. Lathan v. Brinegar, 506 F.2d 677 (9th Cir. 1974); National Forest Preservation Group v. Butz, 485 F.2d 408, 410 (9th Cir. 1973).
This conclusion is not altered either by the fact that Indians were parties to the leases being attacked or by the fact that the Secretary of the Interi- or acted in his capacity as a fiduciary for such Indians in approving the leases. NEPA’s stated purpose is to “assure for all Americans safe, healthful, productive, and esthetically and culturally pleasing surroundings . . . ” 42 U.S.C. § 4331 (b)(2). (Emphasis added). Prior judicial interpretations of NEPA, moreover, give no indication that major federal actions primarily pertaining to Indians were to be immune from environmental challenges by all but such Indians. This court has stated that “[e]nvironmental protection is a part of every federal agency’s mandate; the Act requires ‘agencies to consider environmental issues just as they consider other matters within their mandates.’ ” Lathan v. Brinegar, 506 F.2d 677, 689 (9th Cir. 1974), citing Calvert Cliffs’ Coordinating Comm., Inc. v. Atomic Energy Comm’n, 146 U.S.App.D.C. 33, 449 F.2d 1109, 1112 (1971). (Emphasis in original). The Calvert Cliffs court concluded that agency duties under NEPA are “not inherently flexible” but instead “must be complied with to the fullest [statutory] extent, unless there is a clear conflict of statutory authority.” 449 F.2d at 1115. A like approach was taken by the Tenth Circuit in Davis v. Morton, 469 F.2d 593, 596 (10th Cir. 1972).
To restrict standing, as did the lower court, to institute an environmental challenge to the Crow Tribe would limit standing under the circumstances of this case to a group having a strong economic incentive to alter substantially the environment. NEPA is not such a false promise.
(2) Laches.
We also conclude that the trial court in its disposition of the first claim erred in its determination that the appellants were barred by laches. Laches, an equitable defense, “requires proof of (1) lack of diligence by the party against whom the defense is asserted, and (2) prejudice to the party asserting the defense.” Costello v. United States, 365 U.S. 265, 282, 81 S.Ct. 534, 543, 5 L.Ed.2d 551 (1961); Lathan v. Brinegar, supra, 506 F.2d at 691 — 92. Neither element is present here.
The leases were granted in June, 1972 and the preparation of the EIS began early in 1973. We cannot say that it was a lack of diligence for appellants to refrain from commencing an action to challenge the adequacy of the EIS until they could ascertain its contents. Appellants were entitled to assume that federal agencies would comply with the requirements of NEPA. Environmental Defense Fund v. TVA, 468 F.2d 1164, 1182 (6th Cir. 1972).
Moreover, Westmoreland was put on notice of appellants’ position well before this suit was instituted. Appellants presented their views with respect to the inadequacy in scope and content of the draft EIS during public hearings in November, 1973. Also several environmental groups, including Friends of the Earth, filed suit in the district court for the District of Columbia on June 13, 1973 to require the federal government to issue a comprehensive impact statement covering all aspects of coal and power development in the Northern Great Plains region, the effect of which would be to halt further mining development there pending such an analysis. Westmoreland and the Crow Tribe intervened in that litigation. (The Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit recently reversed a grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendants and remanded the case to the district court to give the Secretary of the Interi- or the opportunity to determine whether an EIS was required in light of certain tests enunciated by the appellate court. Sierra Club v. Morton, 514 F.2d 856 (D.C.Cir. 1975)).
Westmoreland also failed to prove that any prejudice to which it may be subjected by reason of this suit resulted from reliance on appellants’ inaction. The ultimate basis for the sums expended by Westmoreland was its entry into the twenty-year contracts to supply 77,-000,000 tons of coal; those obligations were incurred on the day after the leases were signed in June, 1972. Its commitments under the contracts to begin delivery of coal by July, 1974 necessarily locked Westmoreland into a construction and site development schedule which existed independent of any action or inaction by appellants.
On these facts the defense of laches is not available. This conclusion is strengthened by the fact that laches is not favored in environmental litigation. That is,
[Laches] . . . has received a lukewarm reception in suits presenting environmental questions, for not only will others than the plaintiff suffer the possible environmental effects, but the agency will escape compliance with NEPA, a result not to be encouraged.
Minnesota PIRG v. Butz, 498 F.2d 1314, 1324 (8th Cir. 1974).
The public has an interest in compliance with NEPA that should not be impaired lightly. Liberal rules with respect to standing do not require that the doctrine of laches be treated more hospitably.
B. Approval of Leases as Major Federal Action.
To succeed in their first claim the appellants must not only establish their standing to sue and surmount the defense of laches but also establish that the approval by the Secretary of Interior of coal leases covering 30,876 acres of land constituted “major federal action” within the meaning of 42 U.S.C. § 4332(a)(C). The lower court avoided reaching this issue. This was error. We are persuaded by Davis v. Morton, 469 F.2d 593 (10th Cir. 1972) that the approval in this case was “major federal action” which requires the preparation of an EIS that satisfies the mandate of NEPA. Neither the status of Indians nor the manner in which their lands are held in trust justifies removing from the “major federal action” category the 1972 approval of the leases in this case.
Inasmuch as no EIS was prepared until 1973 and its coverage was limited to the 770 acres embraced in the mining plan, it becomes necessary to determine whether this EIS satisfies the mandate of NEPA with respect to the Secretary’s approval of the leases. The heart of the appellant’s second claim is that it does not. To this issue we now turn.
C. Adequacy of the EIS Covering 770 Acres for Approval of the Leases.
(1) Standard of Review.
Our decisions make clear that the adequacy of an EIS must be reviewed against a procedural standard. Thus the “without observance of procedure required by law” standard of 5 U.S.C. § 706(2)(D) rather than the “arbitrary, capricious, an[d] abuse of discretion” standard of § 706(2)(A) is the proper measure. Lathan v. Brinegar, 506 F.2d 677 (9th Cir. 1974). We also have recognized that this procedural standard “is less helpful in reviewing the sufficiency of an EIS than one might wish.” Trout Unlimited v. Morton, 509 F.2d 1276, 1282 (9th Cir. 1974). The standard presently is more ad hoc in character than might be thought proper. Nonetheless, we have no difficulty in applying it to this case.
(2) Application of the Procedural Standard.
NEPA requires that an EIS be prepared in “every recommendation or report on major Federal actions” and that the statement “shall accompany the proposal through existing agency review processes.” 42 U.S. § 4332(2)(C). These requirements further the purpose of the Act to require officials to consider environmental issues in determining whether the actions they contemplate should be undertaken. An ex post facto justification generally is not an acceptable substitute, as “NEPA does not authorize defendants to meet their responsibilities by locking the barn door after the horses are stolen.” Lathan v. Volpe, 350 F.Supp. 262, 266 (W.D.Wash.1972), aff’d in part and rev’d in part, 455 F.2d 1111 (9th Cir. 1971); see 40 C.F.R. § 1500.7(a); Conservation Society of Southern Vermont, Inc. v. Sec’y of Transportation, 508 F.2d 927 (2d Cir. 1974). That the filing of an EIS should precede rather than follow federal agency action has been consistently recognized by the courts.
In this respect the EIS covering the 770 acres is not adequate. It did not “accompany” the submission by the Secretary. This inadequacy is not excused by the existence of the lower court« decision in Davis v. Morton which held approvals by the Secretary of leases of Indian land not to be “major federal action.” Reliance on that decision in the face of the comprehensive language of the statute fails to elicit the sympathy which acceptance of the defendants’ proffered excuse would require. Nor does failure to accept the excuse constitute retroactive application of NEPA. All the significant actions in this case occurred subsequent to January 1, 1970, the effective date of NEPA.
Nonetheless the defendants insist that the EIS pertaining to the mining plan covering operations for five years on 770 acres of leased land is all that is required because numerous authorities recognize that under proper circumstances an EIS need not be prepared covering an entire project when an adequate EIS covering a discrete phase or segment thereof has been prepared. This is such an instance, the defendants assert. Therefore, continue the defendants, the only-issue is whether the EIS before us is adequate with respect to the mining plan to which it was addressed.
We disagree. While it is true that each mining plan prepared for tracts within the leased area is to a significant degree an independent project which requires a separate EIS with respect to each, it is no less true that the breadth and scope of the possible projects made possible by the Secretary’s approval of the leases require the type of comprehensive study that NEPA mandates adequately to inform the Secretary of the possible environmental consequences of his approval. Westmoreland’s massive capital investment and extended contractual commitments present a situation in which “it would be irrational, or0at least unwise, to undertake the first phase if subsequent phases were not also undertaken.” Trout Unlimited, supra, 509 F.2d at 1285. However, even were this not true, it cannot be denied that the environmental consequences of several strip mining projects extending over twenty years or more within a tract of 30,876.45 acres will be significantly different from those which will accompany Westmoreland’s activities on a single tract of 770 acres.
Under the circumstances of this case we, therefore, hold that an EIS must be prepared for the entire project contemplated by the leases which the Secretary approved in June, 1972. We also hold that each specific mining plan functionally equivalent to the 770-acre plan for which an EIS has been prepared must be accompanied by an adequate EIS. Our position is supported by numerous authorities.
D. Adequacy of EIS Covering 770 Acres for Approval of Five Year Mining Plan.
Implicit in our determination that an EIS must be prepared in conjunction with each separate and distinct mining plan is the holding that any approval thereof by a federal agency constitutes “major federal action.” The magnitude of the undertakings embraced within the five year 770 acre plan before us convinces us beyond any doubt that approval by a federal agency of a substantially equivalent plan is “major federal action.”
This conclusion requires that we examined the EIS prepared by the BIA to determine its adequacy. The appellants assert that it is deficient in six respects, viz. in its treatment of reclamation, ground water supply, water pollution, air quality, alternatives, and cost-benefit analysis.
Appellants characterize destruction of the land as the “most important single environmental impact” of the project and argue that in its discussion of reclamation, the EIS is lacking in data and is insufficiently analytical. We disagree. While we would have preferred a somewhat more detailed and better organized treatment of the proposed reclamation plans and although parts of the discussion are couched in the “conclusory form” we consider less than optimal, we cannot say that the EIS is inadequate in this regard. Nor are we dislodged from this position because of the conflict in expert testimony concerning reclamation procedures and prospects at trial. As was said in Life of the Land v. Brinegar, 485 F.2d 460, 472 (9th Cir. 1973), “disagreement among experts will not serve to invalidate an EIS.”
Appellants’ attack upon the treatment of ground water supply and water pollution highlights the fact that the EIS concedes that certain environmental effects are not known. This does not necessarily undermine the adequacy of the statement. This court has explained:
Neither § 102(2)(B) or (C) [42 U.S.C. § 4332(2)(B) or (C)] can be read as a requirement that complete information concerning the environmental impact of a project must be obtained before action may be taken. If we were to impose a requirement that an impact statement can never be prepared until all relevant environmental effects were known, it is doubtful that any project could ever be initiated.
Jicarilla Apache Tribe of Indians v. Morton, 471 F.2d 1275, 1280 (9th Cir. 1973). We conclude that the treatment of ground water supply and water pollution in the EIS is adequate, as is its discussion of air quality, also attacked by appellants.
We also decide that the EIS adequately deals with the subject of alternatives. See Trout Unlimited, supra, 509 F.2d at 1285.-86. The EIS describes three basic alternatives — approval of the mining plan, modification of the present plan, and rejection of the plan — with subtopics where appropriate. For example, with respect to the “rejection” alternative, there are listed two courses of action which might ensue, i. e., an agency determination that coal mining could not be permitted anywhere on the leased area, or submission of a new mining plan by Westmoreland. In connection with the former, the EIS discusses (1) alternate sources of tribe income, (2) alternate supplies of coal, (3) non-coal energy alternatives, and (4) other alternatives. In connection with the latter, the statement discusses site, mining method, coal use, and transportation alternatives. The process of fractionating alternatives need not be pursued to the brink of triviality.
Finally, appellants characterize the EIS as inadequate for want of a cost-benefit analysis. In Trout we held that the absence of a numerically expressed cost-benefit analysis was not fatal. Trout Unlimited, supra, 509 F.2d at 1286. It is also not fatal here and for the same reasons. Throughout the EIS is recognition and discussion of the various advantages and detrimental effects of the project. The failure to affix numerical weights to each of these does not make the EIS inadequate in this case. We conclude, in sum, that although the EIS could be “improved by hindsight,” it has satisfied the intent of the statute. National Forest Preservation Group v. Butz, 485 F.2d 408, 412 (9th Cir. 1973).
II. Third Claim.
In their third claim appellants assert that the leases must be invalidated because they were entered into and approved in violation of two regulations of the BIA, 25 CFR § 171.9(b) and 25 CFR § 177.4. In their complaint appellants also alleged violation of 25 CFR § 171.27, but they do not pursue this point on appeal. We reject these contentions and hold that the appellants lack standing to challenge 25 CFR § 171.9(b) and that the issues resting on 25 CFR § 177.4 are moot in view of the disposition we have made of the appellants’ first claim.
A. Standing to Challenge 25 CFR 171.9(b).
25 CFR § 171.9(b) provides an acreage limitation on coal leases, viz.:
(1) For coal, a lease shall ordinarily be limited to 2,560 acres. The Commissioner may, however, upon application, approve the combining of leases held by one or more lessees, or approve the issuance of a single lease for more than 2,560 acres in a reasonably compact form, if he shall find that the approval of such larger acreage is in the interest of the lessor and is necessary to permit the establishment or construction of thermal electric power plants or other industrial facilities on or near the reservation.
The coal leases before us involve 14,-745.92 and 16,167.26 acres, respectively, and there is no evidence that the larger acreage will be utilized to construct power plants on or near the Crow reservation.
Our conclusion that the appellants lack standing to challenge a violation of 25 CFR § 171.9(b) is rooted in the fact that they can suffer no “injury in fact” as a result of this violation that is separate and apart from the alleged injuries we have held sufficient to enable appellants to litigate their first and second claims. These alleged injuries made it possible for the appellants to attack the existence of the leases. If the injuries exist in fact, they also will exist without regard to whether the mining operations are conducted under twelve leases of 2,560 acres apiece or under two leases of 14,745.92 and 16,167.-26 acres respectively. In either event, the injuries of which the appellants complain are the same; in neither event have the appellants alleged an injury in fact attributable to the size of the leases.
B. Mootness of the Technical Assessment Question.
25 CFR § 177.4(a)(1) provides:
In connection with an application for a permit or lease, the superintendent shall make, or cause to be made, a technical examination of the prospective effects of the proposed exploration or surface mining operations upon the environment. .
No technical assessment pursuant to 25 CFR § 177.4 was submitted prior to the approval of the leases in June, 1972. However, the assessment was subsequently undertaken and was submitted in the summer of 1973; its adequacy is not challenged here.
Given the present posture of the case, we reach neither the question of whether appellants have standing to challenge the failure to conduct a timely technical assessment nor that of the effect of such a delay. Since the approval of the leases must now be re-evaluated in the light of the comprehensive EIS, the completed technical assessment will be available to the decision-makers at the appropriate time. We conclude, then, that appellants’ claim with respect to the § 177.4 violation has been mooted by the disposition of this appeal.
III. Fourth Claim.
Appellants assert finally that the leases are invalid on the ground that the United States rather than the Crow Tribe holds legal title to the coal rights and hence that the latter had no right to lease them. We do not reach the merits of the ownership question since we hold that appellants lack standing to sue.
To permit them to litigate the issue of the disputed ownership rights would have the effect of an action to quiet title. But appellants themselves make no claims of interest in the coal rights and it is hornbook law that in an action to quiet title, a plaintiff must succeed on the strength of his own title and not on the weakness of his opponent’s.
IV. Disposition of Appellants’ Claims.
Because of the issues above expressed we dispose of the claims before us in the following manner. The district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of appellees is affirmed as to the appellants third and fourth claims. As to the first and second claims it is reversed. We remand to the district court and direct that it enter an order (1) which declares that the approval of the leases was “major federal action” which requires the preparation of an EIS that satisfies the mandate of NEPA, and that the EIS prepared in conjunction with the five-year mining plan on the 770-acre tract was not adequate for this purpose; and (2) which enjoins all future operations under the leases, except those taken pursuant to, and authorized by, the five-year mining plan on the 770 acres approved by the USGS. The injunction shall be effective pending preparation of an adequate EIS covering the entire project and upon the basis of which the Secretary must reconsider his approval of the leases. In reconsidering his approval and in considering any future mining plans, the Secretary must ignore investments or commitments made by Westmoreland under the five-year plan on the 770-acre tract.
Affirmed in part and reversed and remanded in part.
. During the pendency of this appeal, plaintiffs John R. Redding, Kenneth and Madge John and Orville John conveyed their surface interests to appellee Westmoreland and withdrew as plaintiffs in this litigation. Plaintiffs Bruce and Dorothy Cady likewise have conveyed, according to the affidavit of Bruce Cady, approximately one-half of their surface interests in the leased area to Westmoreland; they have, however, indicated their intention to continue with this litigation, either as named plaintiffs or as members of Friends of the Earth, another named plaintiff. Appellee Crow Tribe disputes the substance of the Cady affidavit, claiming that as a result of the conveyance, the Cadys were left with no surface interests within the leased area.
We need not resolve this issue, since even the departure of the Cadys would not moot this lawsuit. Edward M. Dobson, an original named plaintiff, has submitted an affidavit which states that he is presently a resident of Sarpy Creek, Big Horn County, Montana, living on the ranch of J. T. Redding, which is within the leased area. He asserts that the “damage will include permanent destruction of the land which is strip mined, permanent damage to the underground water system upon which the grazing lands in the region depend for ' sub-irrigation, degradation of surface waters and of air quality in the region, intrusion of noise, interference with wildlife, aesthetic damage, and permanent impact on the quality of life in the whole region. . . affidavit, March 27, 1975. Such allegations indicate that appellant Dobson may have suffered an injury to interests reflecting aesthetic, conservational, and economic values distinct from his general interest in advancing the cause of preserving the environment. Clearly appellant Dobson alleges he is among those injured in fact. This provides him with sufficient standing to maintain this action and to deprive it of mootness in its entirety. Furthermore, appellant Friends of the Earth has standing to sue on behalf of those of its members who claim that they will suffer similar injuries if the coal leases are not invalidated. Sierra Club v. Morton, 405 U.S. 727, 739, 92 S.Ct. 1361, 31 L.Ed.2d 636 (1972). The complaint sufficiently alleges such injuries to certain members of Friends of the Earth. See the discussion of standing pp. 792-793 infra.
. While the Tenth Circuit did not discuss the question of standing, the trial court found that “[p]laintiffs have alleged sufficient interests, economic and otherwise, to have standing to sue.” 335 F.Supp. 1258, 1260 n. 2 (D.N.M. 1971).
. Thus prevailing judicial sentiment is to the effect that “ ‘[t]he tardiness of the parties in raising the issue cannot excuse compliance with NEPA; primary responsibility under the Act rests with the agency.’ ” Environmental Defense Fund v. TVA, 468 F.2d 1164, 1183 (6th Cir. 1972), quoting with approval, City of New York v. U. S., 337 F.Supp. 150, 160 (E.D.N.Y.1972); Jones v. Lynn, 477 F.2d 885, 892 (1st Cir. 1973); cf. Calvert Cliffs’ Coordinating Comm., Inc. v. Atomic Energy Comm’n, 146 U.S.App.D.C. 33, 449 F.2d 1109, 1119 (1971).
. See Minnesota PIRG v. Butz, 498 F.2d 1314 (8th Cir. 1974); Committee for Nuclear Responsibility v. Seaborg, 149 U.S.App.D.C. 380, 463 F.2d 783 (1971); Arlington Coalition on Transportation v. Volpe, 458 F.2d 1323 (4th Cir.), cert. denied sub nom., Fugate v. Arlington Coalition on Transportation, 409 U.S. 1000, 93 S.Ct. 312, 34 L.Ed.2d 261 (1972); National Helium Corp. v. Morton, 455 F.2d 650 (10th Cir. 1971); Calvert Cliffs’ Coordinating Comm., Inc. v. Atomic Energy Comm’n., 146 U.S.App.D.C. 33, 449 F.2d 1109 (1971).
. National Forest Preservation Group v. Butz, 485 F.2d 408, 412 (9th Cir. 1973). This was, in fact, one of the few cases in which the failure to adhere strictly to the timing requirements of NEPA was excused; it is readily distinguishable from the situation before us. In that case, the failure to prepare an EIS occurred at a low administrative level. We held that there had been no prejudicial failure to comply with NEPA since (1) a written explanation of the decision made without the benefit of the EIS demonstrated that environmental factors had been considered; and (2) the omission was corrected soon enough that the EIS was available to decision-makers at the higher levels. 485 F.2d at 412.
. Some courts have refused to give NEPA retroactive application. See e. g., San Francisco Tomorrow v. Romney, 472 F.2d 1021 (9th Cir. 1973); Ragland v. Mueller, 460 F.2d 1196 (5th Cir. 1972); Brooks v. Volpe, 319 F.Supp. 90 (W.D.Wash.1970), rev’d on other grounds, 460 F.2d 1193 (9th Cir. 1972); Investment Syndicates, Inc. v. Richmond, 318 F.Supp. 1038 (D.Or.1970); Pennsylvania Environmental Council v. Bartlett, 315 F.Supp. 238 (M.D.Pa. 1970).
Other courts, however, have held the provisions of the Act to be applicable to projects already initiated at its effective date. See, e. g., Indian Lookout Alliance v. Volpe, 484 F.2d 11 (8th Cir. 1973); Jicarilla Apache Tribe of Indians v. Morton, 471 F.2d 1275 (9th Cir. 1973); Environmental Defense Fund, Inc. v. Corps of Engineers, 470 F.2d 289 (8th Cir. 1972); Arlington Coalition on Transportation v. Volpe, 458 F.2d 1323 (4th Cir.), cert. denied sub nom., Fugate v. Arlington Coalition on Transportation, 409 U.S. 1000, 93 S.Ct. 312, 34 L.Ed.2d 261 (1972); Calvert Cliffs’ Coordinating Comm., Inc. v. Atomic Energy Comm’n., 146 U.S.App.D.C. 33, 449 F.2d 1109 (1971); Lathan v. Volpe, 455 F.2d 111 (9th Cir. 1971); Greene County Planning Bd. v. Federal Power Comm’n, 455 F.2d 412 (2d Cir. 1972); Citizens for Mass Transit Against Freeways v. Brinegar, 357 F.Supp. 1269 (D.Ariz.1973); Nolop v. Volpe, 333 F.Supp. 1364 (D.S.D.1971); see also Environmental Law Fund v. Volpe, 340 F.Supp. 1328 (N.D.Cal.1972).
. See, e. g., Sierra Club v. Stamm, 507 F.2d 788 (10th Cir. 1974) [aqueduct and collection system constituted “major federal action” in itself and was not a mere increment of larger water collection development, and diversion project]; Trout Unlimited v. Morton, 509 F.2d 1276 (9th Cir. 1974) [EIS discussing only first of two phases of dam and reservoir project was sufficient where first phase was substantially independent of the second; EIS covering entire project would be necessary only where the dependency of the first phase on those to follow was “such that it would be irrational, or at least unwise, to undertake the first phase if subsequent phases were not also undertaken”]; Sierra Club v. Callaway, 499 F.2d 982 (5th Cir. 1974) [“rule against segmentation for EIS purposes is not an imperative to be applied in every case”; here, dam and lock project was a separate viable entity and not a mere component, increment, or first segment of larger project and has been treated as such by Congress]; Environmental Defense Fund, Inc. v. Armstrong, 352 F.Supp. 50 (N.D.Cal.1972) , supplemental opinion, 356 F.Supp. 131 (N.D.Cal.1973), aff'd, 487 F.2d 814 (9th Cir. 1973) [so long as each major federal action— here, construction of New Melones Dam — was undertaken individually and not as indivisible part of integrated statewide system, EIS with respect to dam was sufficient and construction could continue in the absence of comprehensive study of area water project]; Indian Lookout Alliance v. Volpe, 484 F.2d 11 (8th Cir. 1973) [as a practical matter it is necessary to permit the division of a state highway plan into segments for EIS purposes; court, however, will not consider as an appropriate segment for EIS one which has no independent utility.]
. That the BIA considered a “segmented” method of EIS preparation sufficient need not weigh heavily in our assessment of the demands of this situation, since “[a]n agency decision concerning NEPA requirements is not one committed to the agency’s discretion by law within the meaning of the APA . . . ”. Minnesota PIRG v. Butz, 498 F.2d 1314, 1320 (8th Cir. 1974).
. See, e. g., Conservation Society of Southern Vermont, Inc. v. Sec’y. of Transportation, 508 F.2d 927 (2d Cir. 1974); Scientists’ Institute for Public Information v. Atomic Energy Comm’n., 156 U.S.App.D.C. 395, 481 F.2d 1079 (1973). In Conservation Society the Second Circuit upheld a lower court order requiring that within six months from the issuance by the Federal Highway Administration of a project EIS — dealing with the construction of twenty miles of highway — the agency was required to prepare a statement covering the development of the entire 280-mile corridor which might embrace the smaller stretch. The court agreed that the broader EIS should be prepared even though the ultimate construction of a superhighway of which the segment would be a part could be characterized only as a “long-range goal” or “expectation” and even though no actual plans for its construction existed.
In a recent opinion of this court, Scientists’ Institute has been described as “the leading case analyzing NEPA’s ‘irreversible commitment’ language.” Friends of the Earth, et al. v. Coleman, etc., 513 F.2d 295 (9th Cir. 1974). According to the court:
[Scientists’ Institute] held that an EIS had to be submitted prior to commencement of a massive research and development program for breeder reactors. The court looked to the nature ■ of the contemplated “research and development” program, which involved test projects and massive expenditures for the development and improvement of nuclear energy technology. The court concluded that the decision to go ahead with the “R & D” phase of AEC’s proposed program would also effectively commit the agency to that program’s subsequent implementation phase. Given the long lead time generally associated with the development of energy resources, the decision to implement the program’s first phase would in reality foreclose reliance upon alternative energy sources to satisfy additional demand for energy in the future. (At p. 299).
This court, however, rejected the contention that the case before it fell within the Scientists’ Institute rationale; two environmental organizations were attacking the decision to obtain fill for the construction of a highway segment from the site of a Peripheral Canal, proposed as part of the California Water project. The court held that while the presence of the highway fill excavations would most likely determine the path of the Peripheral Canal if it were built, this did not provide a sufficiently significant nexus to the highway excavations to warrant the preparation of an EIS covering the contemplated water transfer project before permitting highway construction to continue.
. Trout Unlimited v. Morton, 509 F.2d 1276, 1284 (9th Cir. 1974).
. According to the EIS, “It is the stated intent of Westmoreland Resources to mine Sarpy Creek coal and market it at midwestem power plants primarily along or near the Mississippi River. The plants furnish electrical power to customers of four midwestern utility companies located in the States of Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, Illinois and South Dakota.” EIS at 6.
. Although failure to comply with NEPA will ordinarily call for an injunction halting the challenged action until the Act’s requirements are met, in unusual circumstances an application of traditional equitable principles may justify denial or limitation of injunctive relief. See Alpine Lakes Protection Society v. Schlapfer, 518 F.2d 1089 (9th Cir. 1975). We have concluded that in the peculiar circumstances of this case it would not be appropriate to enjoin operations under the five-year mining plan on the 770-acre tract. An EIS adequate in all respects except failure to consider the total project was prepared and considered in conjunction with the decision to approve the five-year plan for the 770-acre tract. The determination to approve this plan involved a properly informed evaluation of the decision to commit these coal resources for removal. As noted supra, the EIS adequately discussed the alternative of no mining, and there is no suggestión that the proper officials failed to give due consideration to this alternative. So long as Westmoreland’s investments and commitments are not considered in determining whether to approve either the leases themselves or any future mining plans, no NEPA policy would be served by halting operations under the five-year plan on the 770-acre tract. For these reasons we have concluded that an injunction against the approved mining on the 770-acre tract would be punitive, rather than remedial. See Hartford-Empire Co. v. United States, 323 U.S. 386, 435, 65 S.Ct. 373, 89 L.Ed. 322 (1945).
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The following is a judicial opinion. Please determine if the opinion is an environmental law case by listing 1 (if it is) or 0 (if not). Some examples of environmental law cases are those which address issues regarding the environment, human health, natural resources, and other related topics.
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1
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OPINION
O’SCANNLAIN, Circuit Judge:
We must decide, among other things, whether the City of Colton, California, can recover response costs under the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act allegedly incurred as a result of perchlorate contamination in its water supply.
I
A
The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980 (“CERCLA”) “is a comprehensive statute that grants the President broad power to command government agencies and private parties to clean up hazardous waste sites.” Key Tronic Corp. v. United States, 511 U.S. 809, 814, 114 S.Ct. 1960, 128 L.Ed.2d 797 (1994). Under CERCLA section 107(a), 42 U.S.C. § 9607(a), a private party may “recover expenses associated with cleaning up contaminated sites.” United States v. Atl. Research Corp., 551 U.S. 128, 131, 127 S.Ct. 2331, 168 L.Ed.2d 28 (2007).
To establish a prima facie claim for recovery of response costs under section 107(a), a private-party plaintiff must demonstrate:
(1) the site on which the hazardous substances are contained is a “facility” under CERCLA’s definition of that term, Section 101(9), 42 U.S.C. § 9601(9); (2) a “release” or “threatened release” of any “hazardous substance” from the facility has occurred, 42 U.S.C. § 9607(a)(4); (3) such “release” or “threatened release” has caused the plaintiff to incur response costs that were “necessary” and “consistent with the national contingency plan,” 42 U.S.C. §§ 9607(a)(4) and (a)(4)(B); and (4) the defendant is within one of four classes of persons subject to the liability provisions of Section 107(a).
Carson Harbor Village, Ltd. v. Unocal Corp., 270 F.3d 863, 870-71 (9th Cir.2001) (en banc) (“Carson Harbor I”) (internal quotation marks omitted). Only the third element — whether the response costs were necessary and consistent with the national contingency plan (“NCP”) — is at issue in this appeal.
Response costs are considered necessary when “an actual and real threat to human health or the environment exist[s].” Id. at 871. Response costs are considered consistent with the NCP “if the action, when evaluated as a whole, is in substantial compliance” with it. 40 C.F.R. § 300.700(c)(3)(i). The NCP “specifies procedures for preparing and responding to contaminations and was promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) pursuant to CERCLA § 105.” Cooper Indus., Inc. v. Aviall Servs., Inc., 543 U.S. 157, 161 n. 2, 125 S.Ct. 577, 160 L.Ed.2d 548 (2004); see also 40 C.F.R. Pt. 300 (codifying the NCP). “It is designed to make the party seeking response costs choose a cost-effective course of action to protect public health and the environment.” Carson Harbor Village LTD. v. County of Los Angeles, 433 F.3d 1260, 1265 (9th Cir.2006) (“Carson Harbor II ”) (internal quotation marks omitted).
B
The City of Colton (“Colton”) draws its water supply from the Rialto-Colton groundwater basin (“Basin”) in San Bernardino County, California. In 1997, Col-ton began monitoring its municipal supply wells for perchlorate contamination. By 2002, Colton had detected perchlorate in three of its wells in concentrations ranging from about 4 to 10 micrograms per liter (“jjtg/L”). At the time, the California Department of Health Services (“CDHS”), which regulates water quality, had an “advisory action level” for perchlorate of 4 µg/L. CDHS informed Colton that because “the perchlorate action level is an advisory action level, and thus, not enforceable,” the three impacted wells “may continue to be used to supply the system.” Nevertheless, in a closed-session meeting between its City Council and City Attorney, Colton adopted a policy of prohibiting the use of water with perchlorate levels above 4 µg/L. Pursuant to this policy, Colton took the impacted wells out of service and instituted a wellhead treatment program to eliminate the perchlorate in 2003.
C
In 2005, Colton filed suit against numerous entities that had engaged in industrial activities in the Basin over the years, alleging that they caused the release of perchlorate into the groundwater. In its third amended complaint, filed in December 2005, Colton alleged that it had spent $4 million to investigate the contamination and to implement the wellhead treatment program. Colton asserted claims for cost recovery and contribution under CERCLA, 42 U.S.C. §§ 9607(a), 9613(f); a claim for declaratory relief as to liability for future costs under the Declaratory Judgment Act, 28 U.S.C. §§ 2201-2202; and various claims under state law.
Numerous defendants filed a motion for summary judgment, arguing that Colton could not recover its wellhead treatment program costs under CERCLA. In its opposition, Colton argued that the defendants were liable for not only its wellhead treatment program costs, but also costs associated with a future Basin-wide cleanup estimated to cost between $55 and $75 million. The district court granted summary judgment for the defendants on Colton’s federal claims and declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over Col-ton’s state law claims. The district court held that Colton could not recover its costs associated with the wellhead treatment program because it failed to show that such costs were necessary'and consistent with the NCP; furthermore, because Colton could not show that it was entitled to recover any of its past costs, its claim for declaratory relief as to its future costs necessarily failed. Colton timely appealed.
II
Colton first seeks reversal of the district court’s summary judgment denying recovery of its past response costs. Colton challenges the district court’s conclusion that the wellhead treatment program was unnecessary because there was no immediate threat to the public health or environment. See 42 U.S.C. § 9607(a)(4)(B). Colton concedes, however, that it failed to comply with the national contingency plan in its past response action. Because Colton’s concession is a sufficient ground upon which to affirm the summary judgment with respect to past response costs, we decline to review the merits of the district court’s conclusion that such costs were unnecessary. See Dorsey v. Nat’l Enquirer, Inc., 973 F.2d 1431, 1438 (9th Cir.1992).
Ill
Colton also contends that the district court erred in granting summary judgment denying its claim for declaratory relief as to its future response costs.
A
Before addressing the merits of the claim, we turn to the parties’ various jurisdictional arguments.
1
The parties dispute whether Col-ton’s claim for declaratory relief is ripe. “The constitutional ripeness of a declaratory judgment action depends upon whether the facts alleged, under all the circumstances, show that there is a substantial controversy, between parties having adverse legal interests, of sufficient immediacy and reality to warrant the issuance of a declaratory judgment.” In re Coleman, 560 F.3d 1000, 1005 (9th Cir.2009) (internal quotation marks omitted).
In Wickland Oil Terminals v. Asarco, Inc., 792 F.2d 887 (9th Cir.1986), we held that a claim for declaratory relief as to CERCLA liability is ripe when the “essential fact establishing [the plaintiffs] right to declaratory relief — the alleged disposal of hazardous substances ... — has already occurred.” Id. at 893. Later, in In re Dant & Russell, Inc., 951 F.2d 246 (9th Cir.1991), we held that a claim for cost recovery and declaratory relief under CERCLA becomes ripe only after plaintiffs “spend some money responding to an environmental hazard.” Id. at 249. Finally, in Boeing Co. v. Cascade Corp., 207 F.3d 1177 (9th Cir.2000), we held that a claim for declaratory relief for contribution under CERCLA section 113 is ripe when “[t]he pollution has been carefully studied, the parties litigated a genuine controversy about millions of dollars they had already spent, and the facts bringing about their relative responsibility have already occurred.” Id. at 1192.
None of these cases imposed any requirement that a party incur recoverable- — i.e., necessary and NCP-compliant— response costs before its claim for declaratory relief is ripe. Indeed, our cases make clear that so long as there has been a release of hazardous substances, and the plaintiff spends some money responding to it, a claim for declaratory relief is ripe for review. Accord Cal. ex rel. Cal. Dep’t of Toxic Substances Control v. Neville Chem. Co., 358 F.3d 661, 668 n. 4 (9th Cir.2004) (explaining in dicta that “[a]s soon as[the plaintiff] expended its first dollar, it could have sued [the defendant] for this dollar and sought a declaratory judgment of[defendant’s] liability for future response costs”).
Here, the facts establishing Col-ton’s right to declaratory relief have already occurred because there is no dispute that there is perchlorate contamination of the Basin. Moreover, there is no dispute that Colton has incurred costs in responding to the contamination, and that Colton will incur additional costs in the future. The only dispute is whether Colton is entitled to recover these costs, which goes to the merits, not justiciability. Because this controversy cannot be deemed “remote and hypothetical,” Wickland Oil, 792 F.2d at 893, we conclude that Colton’s claim for declaratory relief is ripe.
2
We next turn to the argument that Colton has mooted this appeal by filing a substantially new action in the same district court. “A ease is moot on appeal if no live controversy remains at the time the court of appeals hears the case.” NASD Dispute Resolution, Inc. v. Judicial Council of State of Cal., 488 F.3d 1065, 1068 (9th Cir.2007). The test for mootness is “whether the appellate court can give the appellant any effective relief in the event that it decides the matter on the merits in his favor.” Id. (internal quotation marks omitted).
The defendants argue that Colton has effectively redressed the injury it seeks to remedy with this appeal— namely, the district court’s dismissal of its declaratory relief claim — by filing a new action seeking the same relief. Therefore, our reinstatement of such claim would be superfluous. However, “[t]here is a recognized defense to a claim of mootness in the appellate context when a party can demonstrate that a lower court’s decision, if allowed to stand, may have collateral consequences adverse to its interests.” Connectu LLC v. Zuckerberg, 522 F.3d 82, 88 (1st Cir.2008). Here, Colton faces a potential statute of limitations bar with respect to its claims against certain defendants, an argument these defendants have pressed in the later-filed action. A reversal by this court could put Colton on better footing with regard to limitations defenses, which “is a collateral consequence of the type that suffices to defuse a claim of mootness.” Id. at 89. We therefore conclude that this appeal is not moot.
3
Finally, we consider whether the district court’s disposal of Colton’s CERCLA past response cost-recovery claims deprived the court of subject matter jurisdiction over the declaratory relief claim.
“It is well settled that the Declaratory Judgment Act does not itself confer federal subject matter jurisdiction but merely provides an additional remedy in cases where jurisdiction is otherwise established.” Staacke v. U.S. Sec’y of Labor, 841 F.2d 278, 280 (9th Cir.1988) (internal quotation marks and citation omitted). “Any non-frivolous assertion of a federal claim suffices to establish federal question jurisdiction, even if that claim is later dismissed on the merits.” Cement Masons Health & Welfare Trust Fund for N. Cal. v. Stone, 197 F.3d 1003, 1008 (9th Cir.1999).
Here, Colton’s declaratory relief claim is predicated on CERCLA, a federal statute providing a private right of action. Colton’s nonfrivolous assertion of a CERCLA declaratory relief claim is therefore sufficient to confer federal subject matter jurisdiction, regardless of the district court’s conclusion that Colton’s CERCLA past response cost-recovery claims lacked merit.
B
Turning to the merits, we note that the district court held that because it was granting summary judgment on the section 107 cost-recovery claims, “Defendants are entitled to summary judgment in their favor on Plaintiffs ... claim for [declaratory] relief as well.” Colton argues that its failure to incur recoverable response costs in the past has no bearing on whether it will incur such costs in the future. Therefore, Colton contends that it should still be allowed to seek declaratory relief as to liability for its future costs.
Whether a CERCLA plaintiffs failure to establish liability for its past costs necessarily dooms its bid to obtain a declaratory judgment as to liability for its future costs appears to be an issue of first impression in this circuit. Our sister circuits have taken divergent approaches to this issue. Some have held or suggested that recoverable past costs are a sine qua non for declaratory relief under CERCLA. See, e.g., Trimble v. Asarco, Inc., 232 F.3d 946, 958 (8th Cir.2000), overruled, on other grounds by Exxon Mobil Corp. v. Allapattah Sens., Inc., 545 U.S. 546, 125 S.Ct. 2611, 162 L.Ed.2d 502 (2005); Gussack Realty Co. v. Xerox Corp., 224 F.3d 85, 92 (2d Cir.2000) (per curiam); United States v. Occidental Chem. Corp., 200 F.3d 143, 153-54 (3d Cir.1999). Others have held or suggested that declaratory relief may be available even in the absence of recoverable past costs. See, e.g., United States v. Davis, 261 F.3d 1, 46 (1st Cir.2001); County Line Inv. Co. v. Tinney, 933 F.2d 1508, 1513 (10th Cir.1991) (per curiam).
1
The text of the Declaratory Judgment Act provides, in relevant part, that “[i]n a ease of actual controversy within its jurisdiction, ... any court of the United States, upon the filing of an appropriate pleading, may declare the rights and other legal relations of any interested party seeking such declaration, whether or not further relief is or could be sought.” 28 U.S.C. § 2201(a). CERCLA also contains a provision for declaratory relief. Section 113(g)(2) provides that in any initial cost-recovery action under section 107, “the court shall enter a declaratory judgment on liability for response costs or damages that will be binding on any subsequent action or actions to recover further response costs or damages.” 42 U.S.C. § 9613(g)(2).
Although Colton’s complaint referred to the Declaratory Judgment Act rather than CERCLA section 113(g)(2), the latter provision clearly governs this initial cost-recovery action. Because “a precisely drawn, detailed statute preempts more general remedies,” Hinck v. United States, 550 U.S. 501, 506, 127 S.Ct. 2011, 167 L.Ed.2d 888 (2007) (internal quotation marks omitted), we must consider whether Colton was entitled to declaratory relief under CERCLA’s more detailed declaratory relief provision. See A. Shapiro & Sons, Inc. v. Rutland Waste & Metal Co., 76 F.Supp.2d 82, 88 (D.Mass.1999) (declining “to permit an indirect approach to declaratory relief [under the Declaratory Judgment Act] when the direct CERCLA-based approach ... is unavailable”).
The declaratory judgment mandated by section 113(g)(2) pertains to “liability for response costs.” 42 U.S.C. § 9613(g)(2). Such “liability for response costs” must refer to the response costs sought in the initial cost-recovery action, given that the sentence later refers to “any subsequent action or actions to recover further response costs.” Id. (emphases added). Therefore, if a plaintiff successfully establishes liability for the response costs sought in the initial cost-recovery action, it is entitled to a declaratory judgment on present liability that will be binding on future cost-recovery actions.
Here, Colton has failed to establish present liability because of its conceded failure to comply with the NCP but seeks a declaratory judgment on future liability. Section 113(g)(2), however, does not provide for such relief. “[I]t is an elemental canon of statutory construction that where a statute expressly provides a particular remedy or remedies, a court must be chary of reading others into it.” Transam. Mortgage Advisors, Inc. v. Lewis, 444 U.S. 11, 19-20, 100 S.Ct. 242, 62 L.Ed.2d 146 (1979). In section 113(g)(2), Congress specified a mechanism whereby a declaration of liability for costs already incurred has preclusive effect in future proceedings as to costs yet to be incurred. If Congress had intended for a declaration of future liability to be available,- it could have provided that “the court shall enter a declaratory judgment on liability for further response costs.” That it did not leads us to conclude that declaratory relief is available only if liability for past costs has been established under section 107.
2
Colton would have us bypass the initial liability determination to further “CERCLA’s goal of encouraging private parties to clean up hazardous sites.” According to Colton, denying declaratory relief “would discourage private parties from taking future actions to clean up hazardous sites if they failed to comply with the NCP in taking past cleanup actions.” CERCLA’s goal, however, is not simply to encourage private response, but rather to “make the party seeking response costs choose a cost-effective course of action to protect public health and the environment” and to achieve “a CERCLA-quality cleanup.” Carson Harbor II, 433 F.3d at 1265 (internal quotation marks omitted). Providing declaratory relief based on mere assurances of future compliance with the NCP would create little incentive for parties to ensure that their initial cleanup efforts are on the right track. See Dant & Russell, 951 F.2d at 250(noting that premature relief under CERCLA can create perverse incentives).
Moreover, awarding declaratory relief before a plaintiff has incurred any recoverable costs would undermine the very purpose of declaratory relief, which is to “economize[ ] on judicial time.” PMC, Inc. v. Sherwin-Williams Co., 151 F.3d 610, 616 (7th Cir.1998). A court would have to make complicated determinations as to which defendants are responsible for what proportion of the release, without any assurance that the plaintiff would ever “meet its burden of proving in an adversary proceeding that its expenses were necessary and incurred in a manner consistent with the national contingency plan.” Stanton Road Assocs. v. Lohrey Enters., 984 F.2d 1015, 1021 (9th Cir.1993).
We conclude that CERCLA’s purposes would be better served by encouraging a plaintiff to come to court only after demonstrating its commitment to comply with the NCP and undertake a CERCLAquality cleanup. Upon establishing liability under section 107, the plaintiff can “obtain reimbursement for [its] initial outlays, as well as a declaration that the responsible party will have continuing liability for the cost of finishing the job.” Dant & Russell, 951 F.2d at 249-50. Such a declaration would allow the plaintiff to avoid costly and time-consuming relitigation of liability once it has already been established. See Kelley v. E.I. DuPont de Nemours & Co., 17 F.3d 836, 844 (6th Cir.1994) (“Congress included language [in section 113(g)(2) ] to insure that a responsible party’s liability, once established, would not have to be relitigated.... ”). Where, as here, the plaintiff fails to establish section 107 liability in its initial cost-recovery action, no declaratory relief is available as a matter of law.
IV
Colton also appeals from the dismissal of its pendent state law claims. Having disposed of Colton’s federal claims, the district court declined to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over the state law claims. See 28 U.S.C. § 1367(c)(3). “Because the district court did not err in granting summary judgment on the federal claims, it did not abuse its discretion in dismissing the state-law claims.” Bryant v. Adventist Health Sys./W., 289 F.3d 1162, 1169 (9th Cir.2002).
V
For the foregoing reasons, the district court’s summary judgment is AFFIRMED.
. The defendant entities which joined in the motion were the County of San Bernardino, the 1996 Thomas O. Peters and Kathleen S. Peters Revocable Trust, Thomas O. Peters, American Promotional Events, Inc.-West, Pyro Spectaculars, Inc., Astro Pyrotechnics, Inc., Emhart Industries, Inc., Kwikset Locks, Inc., Black & Decker, Inc., Whittaker Corp., and Trojan Fireworks Co.
. Although not all the defendants joined in the motion for summary judgment, the district court sua sponte granted summary judgment in favor of the non-moving defendants.
. The district court also dismissed all counterclaims and cross-claims. Both Goodrich and Pyro Spectaculars, Inc. cross-appealed from the district court's dismissal of these counterclaims and cross-claims. We address the cross-appeals in a memorandum disposition filed concurrently with this opinion.
. Colton contends that if the district court’s holding on the necessity of the response action is allowed to stand, such holding could have a preclusive effect in subsequent litigation. We note, however, that in a future action, Colton could argue that our reliance on the NCP compliance holding alone vitiates any preclusive effect of the district court's necessity holding. See, e.g., Niagara Mohawk Power Corp. v. Tonawanda Band of Seneca Indians, 94 F.3d 747, 754 (2d Cir.1996) ("It is a well-established principle of federal law that if an appellate court considers only one of a lower court’s alternative bases for its holding, affirming the judgment without reaching the alternative bases, only the basis that is actually considered can have any preclusive effect in subsequent litigation.”); see also Restatement (Second) of Judgments § 27, cmt. o (1982).
. The second action filed by Colton, No. 06-01319, was eventually dismissed without prejudice. Colton then filed a third action, No. 09-01864, which is currently pending in the district court. It is this third action to which we refer.
. We reject the argument that Colton is judicially estopped from arguing that there is subject matter jurisdiction. It is well established that subject matter jurisdiction cannot be expanded or contracted "by prior action or consent of the parties.” Am. Fire & Cas. Co. v. Finn, 341 U.S. 6, 17-18, 71 S.Ct. 534, 95 L.Ed. 702 (1951).
. Contrary to the defendants’ assertion, Col-ton did not waive this argument by failing to raise it below. In opposition to summary judgment, Colton argued that "it was not required to complete all tasks required by the NCP prior to the filing of the complaint,” and that "so long as [it] has incurred at least nominal response costs,” it could "invoke the declaratory relief provision of CERCLA to recover its future costs,” even if "it is still too early to know how Colton will comply with the NCP.” This is the same argument it now makes on appeal.
. We grant the outstanding motions for judicial notice.
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The following is a judicial opinion. Please determine if the opinion is an environmental law case by listing 1 (if it is) or 0 (if not). Some examples of environmental law cases are those which address issues regarding the environment, human health, natural resources, and other related topics.
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| "ENGEL, Senior Circuit Judge.\nThis is an appeal by the State of Michigan from the entry of a consen(...TRUNCATED)
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| "WELLFORD, Senior Circuit Judge,\nconcurring:\nI am in accord with Judge Engel’s thorough statutor(...TRUNCATED)
| "The following is a judicial opinion. Please determine if the opinion is an environmental law case b(...TRUNCATED)
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| "EN BANC OPINION\nLYNCH, Circuit Judge.\nThe en banc court has convened to consider a series of issu(...TRUNCATED)
| "The following is a judicial opinion. Please determine if the opinion is an environmental law case b(...TRUNCATED)
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| "HOWARD, Circuit Judge,\ndissenting.\nRespectfully, I disagree with the majority’s analysis of the(...TRUNCATED)
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| "SELYA, Senior Circuit Judge,\ndissenting.\nI am in complete agreement with Judge Howard’s cogent (...TRUNCATED)
| "The following is a judicial opinion. Please determine if the opinion is an environmental law case b(...TRUNCATED)
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| "BALDOCK, Circuit Judge.\nPlaintiffs Lodge Tower Condominium Association and the Town of Vail, Color(...TRUNCATED)
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| "OPINION\nPER CURIAM:\nAll three of these appeals arise from challenges to the April 13, 1994 decisi(...TRUNCATED)
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| "DIANE P. WOOD, Circuit Judge.\nAlthough this environmental case has been pending since 1989, during(...TRUNCATED)
| "The following is a judicial opinion. Please determine if the opinion is an environmental law case b(...TRUNCATED)
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