Supreme Court review goes beyond military waste disposal for Guam residents

The Supreme Court heard arguments over whether the Air Force must comply with the National Environmental Policy Act before detonating or burning roughly 35,000 pounds of unexploded World War II-era munitions on Guam's beaches. The case stems from a 2021 permit application that Guam's Environmental Protection Agency delayed after public comments, prompting the local nonprofit Prutehi Guåhan to sue, alleging the Air Force skipped required environmental impact statements.

Justices including Sonia Sotomayor pushed back on the government's position that NEPA doesn't apply here, noting Congress knows how to exempt programs from the law and hasn't done so in this context. Others, including Elena Kagan, worried that letting the lawsuit proceed now could be pointless if Guam's EPA ultimately approves a different, modified permit.

Prutehi Guåhan's director, Monaeka Flores, argued the stakes are higher for Guam specifically because residents have no voting representation in Congress or the presidency, making NEPA review one of the few levers they have over federal decisions affecting the island. Advocates outside the courthouse tied the case to broader concerns about Guam's territorial status under the Insular Cases.

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