District court confirms Garfield County’s authority to regulate limestone quarry

The Garfield County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) obtained a significant victory in its litigation against Rocky Mountain Industrials, Inc. and RMR Aggregates, Inc. (collectively, “RMI”). On January 31, 2021, in District Court in Garfield County, Ninth Judicial District Judge Anne Norrdin rejected legal claims made by RMI that the BOCC lacked the authority to regulate certain aspects of RMI’s Mid-Continent Quarry located outside of Glenwood Springs. In doing so, the court rebuffed RMI’s claims that state and federal law preempted the board’s authority. The court explained that the permissible exercise of land use authority by Garfield County is broad