Context is Crucial in Examining BLM’s Proposed Rule for Fracking On Federal Land
Earlier this summer, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals issued a decision affirming the lower court’s decision that the Mining Law of 1872 does not impose a limit on the number of mill sites that a mining claimant may...more
California will solicit up to 2 GW of long-duration energy storage resources as part of a 10.6 GW centralized procurement for emerging clean energy technologies to be deployed between 2031 and 2037, the California Public...more
According to the Department of the Interior, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is proceeding with nine solar projects on public lands to potentially power nearly 2 million homes with clean energy. Among the projects, the...more
The subsidence risk in geothermal projects needs to be effectively managed by careful review of site conditions and legal and permitting precedents. Production of geothermal fluids can lead to subsidence of the land...more
In May 2024, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM or the Agency) issued a final rule updating its renewable energy and right-of-way (ROW) policies. BLM is one of the largest landholders in the United States, with significant...more
On July 1, 2024, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) issued a final rule to adjust location and maintenance fees for federal unpatented mining claims, mill sites, and tunnel sites. The Mining Law of 1872, 30 U.S.C. § 28j(c)...more
A U.S. district judge has dismissed claims by Native American tribes and environmentalists who sought to halt construction along part of a $10 billion energy transmission line that will carry wind-generated electricity from...more
Below is this week’s congressional update by BakerHostetler’s Federal Policy team. We’ll continue to post in weeks when both chambers of Congress are in session....more
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Monday approved a long-awaited rule to make it easier to transmit renewable energy such as wind and solar power to the electric grid — a key part of President Joe Biden’s goal to...more
The Fluid Mineral Leases and Leasing Process rule (FMLLP), which was announced by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) on April 12, 2024, represents a significant update to the Federal onshore oil and gas leasing framework....more
The wireless industry has revolutionized the way we connect, from facilitating teleworking, distance learning, and telemedicine to allowing the American public to interact virtually in almost all other aspects of their daily...more
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has finalized two rules to further prioritize the health of public lands and facilitate renewable energy leases: the Conservation and Landscape Health Rule and the Rights-of-Way, Leasing,...more
On April 10, 2024, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) issued a long-awaited final rule updating its venting and flaring requirements on federal and Indian leases, imposing new requirements to establish plans for gas takeaway...more
This article is part of Womble Bond Dickinson’s Energy & Natural Resources thought leadership series titled Striking the Balance: Permitting Reforms for Mining and the Energy Transition. In this series, we’ll explore the...more
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) finally released its new Waste Prevention Rule (“Rule”), which was originally proposed back in November 2022. The new Rule, which will be published in the Federal Register soon, is aimed at...more
The U.S. Department of the Treasury and IRS have released final rules on Inflation Reduction Act provisions that aim to expand the reach of the clean energy tax credits. The Act created the new elective pay and...more
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is reviewing 20 major renewable energy projects — mostly solar — across the West that would cover as much as 193,000 acres of federal land, and generate 13,845 MW of electricity, or enough...more
True Oil LLC v. BLM is a recent opinion by the Wyoming Federal District Court, based on the appeal of an order out of the BLM Rawlins Field Office. At issue was whether a fee surface owner can grant a subsurface easement...more
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced on January 17, 2024, the publication of its draft Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement (PEIS) to help streamline and accelerate utility-scale solar energy development...more
The California Energy Commission (CEC) last Friday released a draft strategic plan for offshore wind development, which estimates a potential generation capacity of up to 59.6 GW off the state’s coast and lays out strategies...more
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced an update to its 2012 plan for solar power development in the western U.S., adding five states to the original six. The original plan identified prime areas for solar development...more
In the Fall of 2023, the Interagency Working Group on Mining Laws, Regulations, and Permitting (“IWG”) released its final report containing recommendations to reform how mining is conducted on public lands (the “Final...more
The United States Forest Service (“Forest Service”) recently announced plans to amend all its land management plans for National Forest System units, affecting 128 plans in total. The Forest Service did so in a scoping notice...more
Work on a $10 billion project that will funnel renewable energy across the West has come to a halt in southwestern Arizona, with Native American tribes saying the federal government has ignored concerns about effects that the...more
It is clear that these have been busy months for federal environmental regulators, especially those working at EPA, the federal departments and the Council on Environmental Quality. Even the Department of Agriculture has...more