Wildlife Habitat
Shale Law Weekly Review—Week of April 1, 2024
Wildlife Habitat: Bureau of Land Management Proposes Changes to Sage-Grouse Conservation and Management ⚡
On March 14, 2024, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced it was proposing to “strengthen greater sage-grouse conservation and management on public lands,” which spans across eleven western states, including California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. BLM subsequently published a Notice of Availability of the Draft Resource Management Plan Amendment and Environmental Impact Statement for Greater Sage-Grouse Rangewide Planning, 89 Fed. Reg. 18,963 (March 15, 2024). The Draft EIS considers six alternatives, noting Alternative 5 as […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – Week of August 16, 2021
National Energy Policy: The U.S. Department of Energy Provided Funding for Carbon-Neutral Solution Projects
Recently, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced funding of $45 million for the integration of renewable energy sources into the grid as support for the decarbonization of the energy sector by 2035. Of this amount, $25 million is awarded to the creation of a consortium aimed to develop grid-forming inverters, which are described as “an emerging technology that allows solar and other inverter-based energy sources to restart the grid without a spinning turbine, typically an oil or coal-fired power plant.” In addition, the U.S. DOE […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – Week of June 21, 2021
Economic Development: Maine Passes Law Requiring State Divestment of Fossil Fuel Securities ⚡
On June 16, 2021, the Governor of Maine signed into law L.D. 99 (H.P. 65), titled “An Act to Require the State to Divest Itself of Assets Invested in the Fossil Fuel Industry.” The act prohibits the Treasurer of State (Treasurer) from investing in the stocks, bonds, commercial paper, or securities of any fossil fuel company and requires the Treasurer to review the holdings of the Maine Public Employees Retirement System and completely divest any fossil fuel-related holdings by January 1, 2026. The law requires the […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – Week of March 1, 2021
Pipelines: Court of Appeals Denies Emergency Stay of Mountain Valley Pipeline Construction ⚡
On February 19, 2021, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied an Emergency Motion for Stay Pending Appeal regarding Mountain Valley Pipeline construction in Appalachian Voices v. FERC, Docket nos. 20-1512 and 21-1040. Several environmental groups filed an Emergency Motion for Stay after the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued orders allowing the pipeline project to continue construction. The Motion requested that that the court stay new pipeline construction to prevent environmental damage along the proposed pipeline route. The court denied […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – Week of February 22, 2021
GHG Emissions: White House Council Rescinds 2019 Draft Guidance Regarding Greenhouse Gas Emissions ⚡
On February 19, 2021, the White House Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published a notice in the Federal Register rescinding 2019 Draft Guidance regarding greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The CEQ was established by the National Environmental Policy Act to advise the president on environmental matters. The 2019 Draft Guidance was meant to provide Federal Agencies with standards of how to evaluate GHG emissions for major federal actions. The 2019 guidance provided that federal agencies should consider “foreseeable” impacts of GHG emissions, but should preclude […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – Week of February 8, 2021
Pipelines: Supreme Court Agrees to Hear PennEast Pipeline Eminent Domain Case
On February 3, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court granted PennEast Pipeline’s Petition for Writ of Certiorari. PennEast filed the Petition after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled that PennEast was barred from bringing a lawsuit against New Jersey due to the state’s Eleventh Amendment immunity. (PennEast Pipeline Co., LLC v. New Jersey, Nos. 19-1191 thru 19-1232). PennEast was approved to begin construction on its pipeline when it sued New Jersey under the Natural Gas Act to gain access to state properties using eminent […]
Shale Law Weekly Review – September 1, 2020
Wildlife Habitat: Federal Judge Modifies Order Vacating Leases Pending Appeal
On August 25, 2020, the U.S. District Court in Montana entered an order staying vacatur of hundreds of oil and gas leases in sage grouse territory in favor of suspending operations and production under the leases pending appeal to the Ninth Circuit. The lawsuit, Montana Wildlife Federation v. Zinke, et al, challenges the federal government’s oil and gas leasing practices on public lands which are alleged to be destructive to the natural habitat of the sage grouse (4:18-cv-00069). The stay of operations and production ordered by Chief District Judge Brian Morris will […]
