Signal Environmental groups sue California over missed deadline on white sturgeon endangered species review

Summary

Four environmental and fishing organizations sued the California Department of Fish and Wildlife. The lawsuit centers on the agency's alleged failure to meet a deadline for a report that would help determine whether white sturgeon in San Francisco Bay should be added to the state's list of threatened or endangered species. San Francisco Baykeeper, California Sportfishing Protection Alliance, Restore the Delta, and Friends of the River filed the petition in Alameda County Superior Court on Monday, and these nonprofits share a common commitment to keeping California's rivers and streams fishable, swimmable, and drinkable. The same four groups had already sued the federal government in February 2025, alleging that the US Fish and Wildlife Service and the Secretary of the Interior failed to deliver a legally required initial determination on whether the San Francisco Bay white sturgeon population should be listed as threatened. This latest suit extends that effort by raising the issue of delayed state-level review.