A federal appellate court rejected South Dakota's bid to stage a Fourth of July fireworks display at Mount Rushmore/Kurt Repanshek file

South Dakota's appeal of a National Park Service decision blocking a 2021 fireworks display over Mount Rushmore National Memorial landed like a dud in the U.S. Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals.

In denying the state's appeal from a lower court, the appellate court wrote that, "Nobody has a right to shoot off fireworks on someone else’s land, whether it be a neighbor; an area business; or, as is the case here, a national park."

While the Park Service under the Trump administration allowed the display in 2020, the Biden administration turned it down for 2021 and remained steadfast this year, citing objections from tribes that see the display as posing "an adverse effect to the traditional cultural landscape."

In rejecting the 2021 permit request, the Park Service noted that firework displays could adversely impact the environment, spark wildfires, interfere with cultural and historical presentations at the memorial for the holiday weekend, affect concessionaire operations, create a public danger due to the gathering of a large group that couldn't safely be evacuated from the memorial in the event of a wildfire, and conflict with a "patriotic Independence Day celebration" the Park Service was planning.

After the Park Service denial, the state sued to overturn it. After a lower court rejected the state's arguments to allow the fireworks, Gov. Kristi Noem appealed that ruling to the Eighth Circuit.

In his ruling Wednesday, Eight Circuit Judge David Stras pointed out that the passage of time since the state brought the case made it moot.

"Time machines aside, to now order the Park Service to reconsider its decision to deny a permit for an event more than a year in the past would be the very definition of '[in]effectual relief,'" he wrote. "No matter what we decide, South Dakota cannot hold the event.

"Nor is the controversy live because South Dakota will keep trying for a permit," he added. "Even assuming that this deny-and-sue cycle is destined to repeat itself, nothing we say today can turn back the clock to 2021."

The court's ruling was applauded by the National Parks Conservation Association.

"Today’s decision better protects Mount Rushmore, and all who visit, work and live there. The adverse effects from previous firework displays are well-documented, including threats to water quality and public health and safety, and to the very resources the park was designated to celebrate and protect," said Christine Goepfert, the organization's Midwest associate director. "Mount Rushmore is one of America’s most recognizable, must-see landscapes with millions of people drawn here to experience its distinctive mountains, sprawling pine forests, and iconic stone carvings. The surrounding Black Hills are sacred to Dakota Indigenous people and are part of their traditional homelands.

"We cannot put these lands in jeopardy for firework displays. We’re grateful that people and the park are better protected for now. With the State of South Dakota already applying for a permit for 2023, we will continue to do all we can to protect this park and surrounding communities.”