The Sixth Circuit granted a petition to review EPA's removal of an air nuisance rule from Ohio's SIP. Environmental groups and individuals argued that EPA violated the CAA and APA in removing the rule. EPA moved to remand without vacatur to review its removal of the rule. The court found that vacatu...
The D.C. Circuit, 2-1, denied electric utility companies' challenge to FERC's order granting a solar company's application for certification of its solar array and battery storage facility in Montana as a qualifying facility under the Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA). The companies arg...
A district court granted summary judgment for the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) in a challenge to its long-term contracts with local power companies. Conservation groups argued that the 20-year contracts, which contained automatic renewal provisions and flexibility provisions allowing the compani...
The Fifth Circuit granted small refiners' motion to stay certain compliance obligations under the CAA pending appeal of EPA's decision denying their requested hardship exemptions from the Act's Renewable Fuel Standard obligations. The refiners argued EPA's late 2021 interpretation of CAA provisions ...
A district court adopted a magistrate judge's recommendation to deny summary judgment for an environmental group in a lawsuit concerning the Army Corps of Engineers' issuance of a CWA §404 permit for a roadway expansion project in Florida. The group argued the Corps violated the CWA by failing to r...
The Fifth Circuit ordered FERC to provide a meaningful explanation for the length of time it takes for final action in Federal Power Act §206 complaint proceedings, in a lawsuit concerning complaints that have gone four to six years without resolution. The Louisiana Public Service Commission petiti...
A district court granted a company's motion to preliminarily enjoin a Louisiana parish from enforcing a 12-month moratorium on activities related to well drilling on parish land. The company moved for an injunction prohibiting enforcement of the moratorium insofar as it banned seismic surveys, Class...
The Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court's denial of a Native American tribe's motion to remand to state court, and the dismissal of, its challenge to the city of Seattle's operation of a dam on the Skagit River. The tribe initially sued Seattle in state court, alleging that operation of the dam ...
The Fifth Circuit denied a petition to review a CWA permit issued by the Army Corps of Engineers authorizing development of a natural gas pipeline and export facility in south Texas. A group of shrimpers and fishermen argued the permit violated the CWA by failing to show that the approved project wa...
The D.C. Circuit vacated a license issued by FERC for operation of a hydroelectric dam on the Susquehanna River in Maryland. The state of Maryland issued a CWA §401(a)(1) certification to the dam's operator in 2018 with conditions. The operator challenged the certification, and the parties reached ...