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Addressing Environmental Issues in Real Estate Development
Below are summaries of the agenda items for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's open meeting to be held on November 16, 2023, pursuant to the sunshine notice released on November 9, 2023....more
On June 3, 2023, President Biden signed into law the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (FRA). The FRA was the result of an agreement between White House and congressional GOP negotiators....more
Hiding in plain sight in the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 (FRA)--which is intended to extend the nation’s debt limit into 2025 in order to avoid a federal default--are provisions that seek to amend the National...more
Below are summaries of the agenda items for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's April 21, 2022 open meeting, pursuant to the sunshine notice released on April 14, 2022....more
Once again finding the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s (“FERC” or “Commission”) environmental assessment (“EA”) analysis of the downstream effect of greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions associated with interstate natural...more
On February 18, 2022, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC” or the “Commission”) issued two controversial policy statements that will significantly impact the permitting and construction of new natural gas pipeline...more
Historically, environmental issues have been front and center for major project development throughout the world. But for projects in the United States, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) increased focus on the...more
The Sierra Club and other environmental organizations filed a Complaint for Declaratory and Injunctive Relief (“Complaint”) in the United States District Court for the District of Montana against the United States Army Corps...more
On March 22, 2021, FERC took a step toward reforming the way in which it analyzes greenhouse gas emissions for purposes of natural gas pipeline certificates. However, FERC did so via a certificate order rather than a revised...more
The final NEPA rule substantially revises environmental review procedures and incorporates most of the perceived controversial changes proposed last January, including elimination of cumulative impact analysis, and shortening...more
On July 6, 2020, Judge James E. Boasberg of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia issued a ruling ordering that the Dakota Access Pipeline (the Pipeline) be shut down and emptied by August 5, 2020. The decision...more
I don’t like to speculate, so I won’t say that July 6, 2020, was the beginning of the end of fossil fuel infrastructure in the United States. I will say, with apologies to Judith Viorst, that it was a Terrible, Horrible, No...more
On December 31, 2019, the British Columbia Supreme Court confirmed that interlocutory injunctions, which can include police enforcement clauses, are an available remedy to restrain protesters from blockading pipeline projects...more
On January 23, 2020, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) adopted the Office of Environmental Projects’ (OEP) Environmental Assessment (EA) of Buckeye XPress, concluding that the project will have “no significant...more
Below are brief summaries of the agenda items for the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s January 23, 2020 meeting, pursuant to the agenda as issued on January 16, 2020. Agenda items E-1, E-2, E-3, E-6, E-7, E-8, E-9, and...more
The Trump administration proposed rules intended to speed up approval of major projects subject to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), such as pipelines, power facilities, mines, highways, and other public...more
The D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals (“Court”) in a July 17th opinion addressed a challenge to two Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“Commission”) Orders authorizing facilities to export natural gas from the United States to...more
SEC Drops Probe of Exxon's Accounting Practices - "The Securities and Exchange Commission has dropped its probe into whether ExxonMobil misled investors about its knowledge of climate change and the potential effects on...more
EPA Chief Looks to Distinguish Himself from Pruitt in Agency-Wide Memo - "The new head of the EPA sent a staff-wide memo laying out steps the agency is taking to increase transparency, a move that's seen as an effort to...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit (“5th Circuit”) overturned a United States District Court’s grant of a preliminary injunction preventing Bayou Bridge from constructing a pipeline in part through the...more
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) recently issued a Notice of Inquiry seeking input on whether to adjust its policies and procedures for reviewing and issuing authorizations for natural gas transportation...more
On February 27, the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Louisiana granted a motion for a preliminary injunction filed by a group of environmental plaintiffs seeking to halt the construction of an oil pipeline in...more
On October 11, the U.S. States District Court for the District of Columbia issued its latest ruling on the Dakota Access Pipeline (DAP). The case is Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe v. US Army Corps of...more
On October 11, 2017, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia declined to vacate the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ (“Corps”) Environmental Assessment (“EA”) of the Dakota Access Pipeline while the agency...more
Despite a series of lopsided losses, natural gas infrastructure opponents continue to probe the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and its infrastructure approval processes for systemic weaknesses. At the end of...more