A district court largely upheld BLM's approval of a proposed dolomite mining project near the Florida Mountains in New Mexico. Environmental groups challenged the approval, arguing BLM violated NEPA by failing to adequately consider adverse effects on water, air, wildlife, a wilderness study area, a...
A district court granted an Indian tribe's motion for a temporary restraining order (TRO) in a challenge to BLM's approval of a lithium mine exploration project in Arizona. The tribe argued BLM violated the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) when it found that no historical properties were af...
Interconnection queues across the United States prevent renewable energy projects from connecting to the grid because of their years-long backlog. Current procedures are increasing the number of projects that withdraw from the queue and the time it takes for renewable projects to seek approval. This Article examines the recent reforms taken by two regional grid operators, the Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland Interconnection (PJM) and the Midcontinent Independent System Operator.
On January 26, 2024, the Biden Administration announced a pause on pending decisions on permits to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) to non-free trade agreement countries until the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) updates underlying analyses for the authorizations. The United States is the largest global exporter of LNG, and its exports have rapidly grown over recent years. The pause presents an opportunity to review impacts of increased LNG export, including climate consequences, environmental justice harms, and more.
A district court granted summary judgment for conservation groups in a challenge to the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service's (APHIS') recent update to a program concerning the use of pesticides to suppress grasshopper and cricket outbreaks. The groups argued APHIS' 2019 EIS and five state-le...
The D.C. Circuit granted in part and denied in part challenges to FERC orders reauthorizing two liquefied natural gas export terminals in Texas and a pipeline that would carry natural gas to one of them. The city of Port Isabel and an environmental group argued FERC failed to comply with NEPA and Na...