The Eleventh Circuit affirmed a lower court decision dismissing environmental groups' claim that the U.S. Navy and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) violated NEPA, the ESA, and the APA in deciding to install and operate an undersea warfare training range in waters adjacent to the only kno...

The Federal Circuit held that the Minerals Management Service (MMS) breached its contract with a natural gas pipeline construction company involving the construction of two segments of a pipeline that extends from Wyoming to Ohio. Under a "precedent agreement," MMS would pay the company roughly $1.2...

The Ninth Circuit held that the California Air Resource Board (CARB) low carbon fuel standard's regulation of ethanol does not facially discriminate against out-of-state commerce. CARB treats all ethanol within each regional category the same, and its decision to draw one of the regional categories ...

A D.C. court denied a conservative publication's motion for reconsideration of the court's earlier decision denying the publication's motion to dismiss a climate scientist defamation suit against it. There is sufficient evidence in the record to demonstrate that the scientist is likely to succeed on...

A California court issued a tentative decision upholding the California Air Resource Board's (CARB's) authority to sell greenhouse gas allowances at auction under the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006, also known as Assembly Bill 32 (AB 32). The court tentatively agreed that the auctio...

The D.C. Circuit ordered NRC to resume processing of DOE's pending license application to store nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain. The Nuclear Waste Policy Act requires NRC to issue a final decision approving or disapproving the application within three years of its submission. DOE submitted its appli...

The D.C. Circuit denied states' and industry groups' petitions challenging EPA rules establishing CAA permitting requirements in states that do not have implementation plans for greenhouse gases. The rules were designed to ensure that a permitting authority was available to issue the required greenh...

A California appellate court held that the California Air Resources Board (CARB) violated the California APA and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) when it adopted its Low Carbon Fuel Standards (LCFS) regulations to reduce the carbon content of transportation fuels sold, supplied, or of...