Wilderness Watch v. Mainella

After Cumberland Island received wilderness designation under the Wilderness Act, which bars motor-vehicle use except as minimally necessary to administer the Act, the National Park Service (defendant) continued using a 15-person van to shuttle tourists to Plum Orchard, a historic site just outside the wilderness zone. Wilderness Watch (plaintiff) sued, and the Park Service argued the shuttle both fulfilled its separate duty to preserve historic resources and furthered the Wilderness Act's own goal of permitting historical uses, and that the van's impact was no different from other administratively necessary vehicle use. The trial court granted the Park Service summary judgment, and Wilderness Watch appealed.

Whether a federal agency's interpretation of a statute will be upheld when that interpretation conflicts with the statute's evident intent.