Recent Updates to Federal Environmental and Natural Resource Regulations
On-Demand Webinar | Regulatory Uncertainty and Linear Infrastructure Projects: Where Are We and What’s Ahead?
On-Demand Webinar | Linear Infrastructure Redux: Adapting Your Projects to Meet the New Regulatory Climate
On-Demand Webinar | The New NEPA Regulations: A Practical Guide to What You Need to Know
How Trump's Infrastructure Plan Impacts the Energy Industry
This morning our nation's highest court agreed to hear an appeal by seven Utah Counties and a railroad company of a DC Circuit Court of Appeals decision. That DC Circuit decision revoked the Surface Transportation Board's...more
The US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has affirmed the dismissal of two legal challenges to the Vineyard Wind 1 project (the Project). On April 24 and April 25, 2024, the same panel of First Circuit judges issued...more
UPDATE: A recent lawsuit against Dominion Energy’s approved Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project off the coast of Virginia underscores our prediction in our March 8 QuickStudy that plaintiffs will craft their...more
On March 18, three advocacy organizations and their members filed a lawsuit challenging an offshore wind project against the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM). The...more
On February 13, 2024, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) designated two final Wind Energy Areas (WEAs) for the development of floating offshore wind energy projects off the southern coast of Oregon. This...more
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) will be conducting a regional environmental review of potential development activities on the five offshore wind lease areas off California’s central and north coasts....more
Judge Indira Talwani of the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts has rejected another challenge to federal permits and approvals for the Vineyard Wind Project (Vineyard Wind or the Project). Vineyard Wind is...more
California has tremendous offshore wind resources and ambitious offshore power goals, but the uncertain rules and regimes for development have delayed implementation of projects. The California Energy Commission (CEC)...more
On May 25, 2023, the federal District Court for the District of Massachusetts denied a motion by plaintiffs seeking to halt construction of the Vineyard Wind project offshore of Massachusetts, in the case of Seafreeze...more
On May 30, 2023, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced its final environmental assessment (EA) of the effects of site characterization and site assessment activities associated with leasing federal waters in...more
The U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts granted the government’s motion for summary judgment on May 17, 2023, in a case seeking to invalidate agency approvals of the first utility-scale offshore wind project...more
The federal government has successfully defended its approvals of the Vineyard Wind project offshore Massachusetts (Project), setting the stage for further decisions as other challenges proceed. Vineyard Wind is the first...more
On Wednesday, May 17, 2023, the federal District Court for the District of Massachusetts granted summary judgment in favor of the United States Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (“BOEM”) and Vineyard Wind, and denied summary...more
The federal government’s offshore wind program notched another important victory on March 9, 2023, when the United States District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed a lawsuit seeking to overturn the New York Bight...more
Existing safety and environmental oversight and enforcement regulations governing Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) renewable energy activities were moved from the purview of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) to that...more
The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) published its notice of intent (NOI) on Friday, July 15, 2022, to prepare a programmatic environmental review to analyze the potential impacts of wind energy development activities...more
The Bureau of Ocean and Energy Management (BOEM) revealed its intention to request Calls for Information and Nominations for a variety of Call Areas along the Central Atlantic and Oregon coasts on April 27. The Calls for...more
New York Bight Lease Sale Under Attack - A New Jersey-based nonprofit organization, Save Long Beach Island, and its president sued in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in January 2022. They are asserting...more
Offshore wind development in federal waters off the California coast is rapidly moving closer to reality. Although construction and operation remains several years away, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), the...more
Last week’s blog post on NEPA and renewable energy development discussed how NEPA intersects with legal challenges brought against wind and solar projects. On March 9, 2022, concerned residents from the Town of East Hampton,...more
2021 witnessed a new but familiar competition among stakeholders for the use and enjoyment of the Outer Continental Shelf. Last year, interested parties initiated five lawsuits against the first federally approved offshore...more
The California coast offers significant potential for offshore wind development that can help the state reach its renewable energy goals. Developers of wind energy projects located off the California coast will face a number...more
Offshore wind development in the United States continues to draw opposition from coastal landowners, businesses, organizations, and other users of ocean waters, as it has since the industry first emerged here. However,...more
The momentum behind offshore wind has continued to grow since our February 2021 post on the topic. Last week, the U.S. Department of the Interior announced plans to open seven more offshore wind leases by 2025 off both coasts...more
The California Legislature on Sept. 9, 2021, approved landmark state legislation to facilitate California's offshore wind energy potential. Assembly Bill (AB) 525 requires the California Energy Commission (CEC) to prepare a...more