GHG Emissions
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of May 01, 2023
LNG Infrastructure: FERC Approves Two LNG Projects in Brownsville, Texas ⚡
On Friday, April 21, 2023, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) authorized the construction and operation of two major liquid natural gas projects proposed by LNG companies in Brownsville, Texas. In their first order, FERC found the LNG project proposed by Rio Grande LNG to be consistent with the public interest and in compliance with the commission’s analysis of environmental justice impact. Similarly, in their second order, FERC found that the project proposed by Texas LNG, after taking into account the social cost of carbon and the potential […]
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of April 24, 2023
GHG Emissions: EPA Announces New Standards with Vehicle Emissions Reduction Goals ⚡
On Wednesday, April 12, 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced new emissions standards for light-duty and medium-duty vehicles manufactured from 2027 to 2032. As proposed, these standards would become increasingly stringent across the six-year period, both for light- and medium-duty vehicles. The new standards also include revisions to other programs concerned with greenhouse gas emissions (GHG emissions), including carbon credits, zero-emissions and hybrid vehicles, and other vehicle compliance measures. Emissions resulting from the refueling of incomplete medium-duty vehicles are also subject to new standards, as well as […]
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of April 10, 2023
GHG Emissions: EPA Rubber-stamps New California Regulations for Heavy-duty on Road Vehicles and Engines ⚡
On March 30, 2023, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) granted two waiver requests sought by the California Air Resource Board (CARB) pertaining to the regulation of heavy-duty on road vehicles and engines. Specifically, CARB sought a waiver of the federal preemption of motor vehicle emissions regulation under Section 209(b) Clean Air Act. In its decision, the EPA first granted CARB’s 2018 HD Warranty Amendments, which extends the emissions warranty period for heavy-duty diesel vehicles and engines over 14,000 pounds manufactured in 2022 or later. […]
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of March 27, 2023
GHG Emissions: European Parliament Adopts Draft Measures to Achieve Zero-emission Buildings by 2050 ⚡
On Tuesday, March 14, 2023, Members of the European Parliament adopted a proposed amendment to the Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, which now calls for the total decarbonization of buildings in all members states by 2050. In addition to buildings, the revision 55 percent reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across the European Union (EU) by 2030. The proposal recommends that Member States should move away from fossil fuels for heating and suggests that tax incentives should be adopted to encourage renewable energy sources instead. The […]
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of March 20, 2023
Methane Emissions: DOE Offers $47 Million to Fund Methane Emissions Reduction Technologies ⚡
On Monday, March 13, 2023, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced $47 million in funding that will be made available for 22 new projects focused on methane emissions reduction. These projects will develop technologies to detect, quantify, and reduce methane emissions in regions of the United States that are oil and natural gas producing. The technologies being developed are categorized into five areas, which involve the mitigation of emissions from oil and gas machinery, monitoring and measuring of emissions from oil and gas facilities, investigation of methane […]
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of March 13, 2023
Pipelines: US Fish and Wildlife Service Finds Mountain Valley Pipeline Unlikely to Threaten Existence of Five Regional Species ⚡
On Monday, March 1, 2023, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) published a revised impact assessment for the proposed Mountain Valley Pipeline, a 304-mile natural gas pipeline that will span from the Wetzel County region of West Virginia to the Pittsylvania County region of Virginia. In their assessment, the FWS’s conducts jeopardy analyses for five particular species of plant and animals that inhabit the region across which the pipeline will be constructed. The overall “rangewide status” of the species […]
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of March 6, 2023
GHG Emissions: DOE Announces $2.52 Billion in Funding for Carbon Capture Projects ⚡
On February 23, 2023, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced that two programs created to support the development of carbon capture technology will receive $2.52 billion in funding. The carbon management technologies in development include systems capture, transport, and storage of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Both programs will focus on these technologies in order to make coal and natural gas use more effective. The first program, called “Carbon Capture Large-Scale Pilots,” will receive $820 million in funding for testing up to ten large-scale projects aimed at […]
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of February 13, 2023
GHG Emissions: DOE Announces $131 Million in Funding for R&D of Wide-scale CO2 Reduction Projects ⚡
On January 30, 2023, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced that $131 million will be invested to help in the research and development of 33 projects aimed at reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) pollution. The projects will reduce CO2 pollution through “carbon management technologies,” which will aid in the capture of these pollutants when they are generated through the activities of power plants and industrial facilities. The technology will also be used to capture CO2 from the atmosphere so that it can be stored at […]
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of January 16, 2023
GHG Emissions: Council on Environmental Quality Issues New Guidance for Agency Analysis of Greenhouse Gas and Climate Change Impacts ⚡
On January 6, 2023, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) issued new guidance for agencies in their analysis of how proposed actions under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) will impact the climate and contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. CEQ states that the purpose of the guidance is to help federal agencies better evaluate the impact of their agency actions on climate change. The new guidance asks agencies to consider both “(1) the potential effects of a proposed action on […]
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of December 19, 2022
GHG Emissions: Environmental Groups File Lawsuit Against EPA Seeking Updated Nitrogen Oxide Emissions Standards ⚡
On December 7, 2022, the Environmental Defense Fund and Sierra Club filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s failure to update 2006 air pollution standards for stationary combustion turbines. Env’t Def. Fund v. EPA, Case No. 3:22-cv-7731. The lawsuit cites the EPA’s duty to review and revise the air pollution standards under the Clean Air Act every eight years and asks the court to require the EPA to do so.
National Energy Policy: Multiple […]
