The California Supreme Court affirmed an appellate court ruling in favor of oil producers and mineral rights holders in a challenge to a county ordinance banning oil and gas wastewater injection and impoundment and drilling of new oil and gas wells. The plaintiffs argued the ordinance was preempted ...

A district court denied environmental groups' motion for summary judgment in a challenge to the Forest Service's approval of a gold exploration project in Caribou-Targhee National Forest. The groups argued the Service violated NEPA by failing to take a "hard look" at the potential effects exploratio...

A district court denied summary judgment for oil and gas leasing proponents and the state of Alaska in a challenge to President Biden's Executive Order No. 13990 and actions DOI took to implement the order's directive to place a temporary moratorium on implementation of a leasing program in the Arct...

The Tenth Circuit affirmed a district court ruling upholding BLM's approval of a development project on state and federal land in southwestern Wyoming. Conservation groups argued BLM violated NEPA by failing to adequately consider impacts of the project on sage-grouse populations and pronghorn antel...

The Seventh Circuit affirmed summary judgment for the Army Corps of Engineers in a challenge to its decision to continue an over century-old project that involves building river training structures to maintain the navigable channel in the Middle Mississippi River. Environmental groups argued that th...

The Fifth Circuit, 2-1, granted a petition to review FERC orders it previously vacated and remanded, which instructed utilities in the WestConnect transmission planning region on how to implement a cost allocation scheme for grid improvements in the region. A utility company argued the orders, which...

A district court granted DOI's and the Army Corps of Engineers' motion to dismiss a lawsuit concerning construction of a wind farm off the coast of New York. Four homeowners sought to halt construction, claiming that onshore trenching associated with the project would worsen existing perfluoroalkyl ...

A district court granted a pipeline company's motion to preliminarily enjoin enforcement of an Iowa county zoning ordinance promulgated in response to the company's proposed carbon dioxide pipeline. The company argued the ordinance was preempted by the federal Pipeline Safety Act and by Iowa Code §...

A district court denied summary judgment for environmental groups in their challenge to the Army Corps of Engineers' approval of a navigation improvement project in San Juan Harbor in Puerto Rico. The groups sued the Corps, NMFS, and FWS, arguing they violated the ESA, NEPA, and the CWA. With respec...

The D.C. Circuit dismissed for lack of jurisdiction a challenge to two FERC orders approving construction and operation of a natural gas compressor station in Massachusetts. Residents, municipalities, and an environmental group petitioned for review of the orders—one granting the station owner's r...