Kesterson Protester’s Suit Moved to Court of Claims

SACRAMENTO —  The owner of a ranch and duck club in Merced County near Kesterson Reservoir has moved a $33-million lawsuit over pollution of his water with farm drainage to the U.S. Court of Claims in Washington, his lawyer said.

Bruce Nahin, the Beverly Hills lawyer who represents Robert James Claus and his wife, Aren, said Friday that the suit will be dropped in U.S. District Court here.

Nahin said the new Court of Claims suit names only the federal government as defendant, dropping the state and Grasslands Water District, who were named in the district court suit.

He said the Court of Claims suit was filed two months ago, and District Court Judge Lawrence Karlton said Nahin had to choose whether to pursue the action in the Sacramento court or in Washington.

Claus’ petition to the state Water Quality Control Board, protesting farm drainage flows into Kesterson and Grasslands, triggered the probe into the Bureau of Reclamation’s management of Kesterson, where selenium pollution was blamed for killing wildfowl and maiming their offspring.