On September 15, 2017, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC or the Commission) issued an order in which it concluded that delays by the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (NYDEC or the Department) in processing Millennium Pipeline Company’s application for Clean Water Act (CWA) water quality certification constituted a waiver of the certification requirement.
Continue Reading FERC: Water Quality Certification Waiver Period for Pipeline Projects Begins Upon Receipt of a Written Request for Certification
Clare Ellis
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Second Circuit Upholds State Veto of Constitution Pipeline Project Via Denial of Water Quality Certification
By Clare Ellis on
As previously reported on PipelineLaw, the ongoing controversy over an April 2016 decision by the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (NYDEC or the Department) to deny a Clean Water Act (CWA) water quality certification to Constitution Pipeline Company (Constitution or the Company) for its interstate natural gas pipeline project in Pennsylvania and New York highlights tensions between federal and state oversight of such projects.
Continue Reading Second Circuit Upholds State Veto of Constitution Pipeline Project Via Denial of Water Quality Certification
PHMSA and CSB Urge Special Precautions in the Wake of Hurricane Harvey
By Clare Ellis on
In the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, the devastating storm that recently swept through central Texas, both the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB) are urging special precautions to minimize the impact of the storm on pipeline and other energy infrastructure in the state.
Continue Reading PHMSA and CSB Urge Special Precautions in the Wake of Hurricane Harvey
D.C. Circuit: FERC to Decide Water Quality Certification Waiver for Natural Gas Pipeline Projects
Posted in Natural Gas
As reported in The Nickel Report, the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit last week dismissed an interstate natural gas pipeline company’s challenge to the State of New York’s delay in issuing a water quality certification under section 401 of the federal Clean Water Act (CWA). The case is one of several pending across the country that involve a state’s authority to issue, deny, or waive a CWA water quality certification for interstate natural gas pipeline projects.
Continue Reading D.C. Circuit: FERC to Decide Water Quality Certification Waiver for Natural Gas Pipeline Projects
Federal Court Remands Corps Environmental Analysis for Dakota Access Pipeline
By Deidre G. Duncan, Todd S. Mikolop & Clare Ellis on
Posted in Environmental
Despite oil already flowing through the pipeline, federal litigation involving the controversial Dakota Access Pipeline (DAPL) took another turn last week when partial summary judgment was granted to tribes challenging the adequacy of the US Army Corps of Engineers’ review of DAPL under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other statutes. Two tribes, the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe, filed suit in July 2016 attempting to block construction of the last remaining segment and operation of DAPL. As sometimes is the case, agency approvals came faster than the court’s opinion, and without a stay of proceedings DAPL began operating in early June 2017. Having granted partial summary judgment, the court did not require pipeline operations to cease, instead delaying the question of an appropriate remedy until after further briefing by the parties.
Continue Reading Federal Court Remands Corps Environmental Analysis for Dakota Access Pipeline