Suit Over Developer’s Noise Is Dismissed
A judge has dismissed a lawsuit filed against Newhall Land & Farming Co. and the Army Corps of Engineers by environmentalists who said the firm had used noise machines to frighten two species of endangered birds from a construction site.
The suit sought a review of a permit issued by the corps that allows Newhall Land to alter the banks of the Santa Clara River for its projects.
Federal wildlife officials said Newhall Land used 30 to 40 of the devices, known as hazing machines, along the river.Two endangered birds have been seen there.
When the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service contacted Newhall Land about the machines in May, the developer shut them off, federal officials said.
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