Shamrock remains part of Dutra lawsuit

Sonoma County Judge Rene Chouteau has rejected an effort by Shamrock Materials to be dropped from a lawsuit challenging the county's approval of the Dutra Materials asphalt plant near the Petaluma River.

The company was named as a defendant in the lawsuit filed in January against the county and Dutra by environmental groups and the city of Petaluma.

It was included in the legal challenge because a late change in the Dutra project required use of Shamrock's property along the Petaluma River to deliver aggregate to the adjacent Dutra site. Shamrock made no objections to the changes at the time. Supervisors approved the disputed Dutra project on a 3-2 vote in December.

Shamrock contended that it should not be a party to the lawsuit because it never consented to the county requirement and has no current stake in the Dutra project.

In a hearing Thursday morning, Chouteau confirmed his tentative ruling denying Shamrock's request. No court date has been set in the case.

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