Just days before ConocoPhillips’ Alaska division was slated to begin construction of the long-planned Willow project, a federal judge ordered a delay in response to a lawsuit by environmental groups that alleges former President Trump’s administration overlooked wildlife and climate change impacts. In a decision issued last week, U.S. District Court Judge Sharon Gleason temporarily…
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California’s Kern County Oil, Gas Rules Undergoing Further Review
Kern County, CA, has begun a process that could lead to resuming oil and gas well permitting in April if county supervisors approve a draft environmental report prepared after an appellate court last year set aside efforts to streamline the process. The Fifth District Court of Appeals based in Fresno, CA, halted the permitting system…

MVP Clears Major Permitting Hurdle as Forest Service Completes Supplemental Review
The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) has finalized a supplemental environmental review of the Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP), a key step in resolving a permitting setback that has prevented construction on a small portion of the project routed through the Jefferson National Forest. Late last week, the USFS released a final supplemental environmental impact statement for…

Federal Court Upholds Keystone XL Border-Crossing Permit — For Now
A federal district court has denied ongoing legal challenges to the Trump administration’s 2019 approval of TC Energy Corp.’s Keystone XL oil pipeline. In separate orders handed down late last week, Chief District Judge Brian Morris of the U.S. District Court for Montana denied requests filed by tribal and environmental groups seeking a preliminary injunction…

Montana Governor Asks Court to Rescind Plans for Oil, Gas Development
Montana Gov. Steve Bullock has asked a district court to shelve three large-scale plans that would open most federal lands in the state to oil and gas development, arguing they were invalidated when a federal court ruled the Trump administration’s top public lands official was serving illegally. U.S. District Judge Brian Morris of the District…

EPA’s Rollback of Oil, Gas Methane Rules Paused by Court Amid Multiple Lawsuits
A federal court on Thursday paused a rescission by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) of Obama-era regulations to curb methane emissions from the oil and gas industry. Swift legal action against the sweeping rule change had been promised by environmental advocates, and judicial intervention had been widely anticipated by experts. The U.S. Court of…

Dakota Access Operations Face ‘Little Risk’ For Now as Court Ruling Not Expected Until After Election
Parties to ongoing litigation challenging the continued operation of the Dakota Access Pipeline LLC (DAPL) have agreed to a schedule that would see the last brief filed in mid-December, raising the prospect that a ruling in the case won’t arrive until after the election. Lawyers in the case, between the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe and…

Enbridge Resuming Full Line 5 Oil Deliveries after Safety Review Finds No Leak Threats
Deliveries resumed Wednesday through both pipes in Enbridge Inc.’s 540,000 b/d Line 5 across the lake floor of the Straits of Mackinac in Michigan, after a safety examination shuttered one of the conduits for 11 weeks. The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) allowed the Calgary-based operator to restore full capacity. The Michigan Circuit…

FERC Asked for Two-Year Extension as MVP Still Resolving ‘Permitting Issues’
Mountain Valley Pipeline LLC, beset by legal and regulatory hurdles that have pushed back the startup of its 303-mile, 2 million Dth/d Appalachian natural gas conduit, has asked FERC for a two-year extension to bring the project online. Citing “unforeseen litigation and permitting delays” outside of the project’s control, MVP in a filing Tuesday with…

Sunoco Cleared to Restart Mariner East Work in Pennsylvania After Appeal Granted
An administrative law judge has allowed Sunoco Pipeline LP to resume horizontal directional drilling (HDD) on a stretch of its Mariner East pipeline system in southeast Pennsylvania, overturning an order from state regulators that stopped construction last week. Sunoco appealed the order to the Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board (EHB), which oversees decisions made by the…