Environmental Law

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On January 2, 2026, the D.C. Circuit declined to rehear en banc its prior order restoring the Clean Air Act’s (CAA) Title V affirmative defense to liability for excess emissions caused by emergency events. A group of environmental organizations had petitioned for rehearing en banc, arguing that the court’s reasoning violated D.C. Circuit precedent.

Last week, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced that it will formally grant the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) primary authority (known as “primacy”) to administer the Class VI Underground Injection Control (UIC) program for the geologic sequestration of carbon dioxide under the Safe Drinking Water Act. With this approval, developers pursuing carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects in Texas will work directly with the RRC for Class VI well permitting, rather than navigating the EPA’s permit queue.

On May 23, 2025, FERC upheld on rehearing its prior orders authorizing Venture Global CP2 LNG, LLC to build a new liquified natural gas (“LNG”) export terminal (“CP2 LNG Terminal”) and granting Venture Global CP Express, LLC (together, with Venture Global CP2 LNG, LLC, “Venture Global”) a certificate of public convenience and necessity (“CPCN”) to construct and operate a new natural gas pipeline (“CP Express Pipeline,” together, with the CP2 LNG Terminal, the “Projects”) to connect the CP2 LNG Terminal to the existing natural gas pipeline grid (“May 23 Rehearing Order”). In its May 23 Rehearing Order, FERC continued to find that the Projects are environmentally acceptable actions and not inconsistent with the public interest.

On May 9, 2025, fifteen democratic states (“Plaintiff States”) sued the Trump Administration in Washington District Court, claiming that President Trump’s executive order “Declaring a National Energy Emergency” (“Executive Order”) is unlawful. The Plaintiff States argue that the Executive Order commands federal agencies to disregard the law and applicable regulations to fast-track activities that will damage waters, wetlands, endangered species, and the people and wildlife that rely on these resources.

On January 14, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit (“D.C. Circuit”) held that FERC complied with the National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) in approving the surrender of a hydroelectric project license. The court found that FERC had adequately considered the alternative of dam removal and determined that keeping the dams in place outweighed any potential benefits to recreation, fisheries, and other environmental concerns. The case, American Whitewater v. FERC, involved a challenge to FERC’s license surrender decision regarding the Somersworth Hydroelectric Project (“Project”) on the Salmon Falls River, which spans the border between New Hampshire and Maine.

On July 16, 2024, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (“D.C. Circuit”) found that FERC failed to adequately consider a liquefied natural gas (“LNG”) project’s greenhouse gas (“GHG”) emissions and failed to properly assess the cumulative effects of the LNG project’s nitrogen dioxide (“NO2”) emissions. While the D.C. Circuit remanded to FERC for further consideration, it did so without vacatur.

On July 9, 2024, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (“D.C. Circuit”) declined to stay a new Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) rule that seeks to limit methane emissions in the oil and gas industries (“Methane Rule”), thereby allowing the Methane Rule to remain in effect while litigation proceeds.

On June 14, 2024, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit (“D.C. Circuit”) denied Food & Water Watch’s environmental challenges to the FERC’s order granting a certificate of public convenience and necessity (“CPCN”) to Tennessee Gas Pipeline Company (“Tennessee Gas”) for its East 300 Upgrade Project (“Project”).

We are pleased to announce the release of our latest whitepaper, Fueling Up: How to Make U.S. Clean Hydrogen Projects Happen. This comprehensive report explores the critical steps needed to unlock the potential of clean hydrogen in the U.S., and the related challenges faced by developers and utilities.

On September 5, 2023, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit (“Ninth Circuit”), in Solar Energy Industries Association v. FERC, held that the Public Utility Regulatory Policy Act (“PURPA”) gives FERC broad discretion to evaluate which implementation rules are needed to encourage the development of qualifying small-scale renewable generating facilities. While the Ninth Circuit did not vacate FERC’s decision, it remanded the decision back to FERC for failing to conduct the proper National Environmental Policy Act (“NEPA”) review. The decision stems from the Solar Energy Industries Association and several environmental organizations’ (collectively, “Petitioners”) challenge to Order Nos. 872 and 872‑A (collectively, “Order 872”), which were rules adopted by FERC that altered which small-scale renewable facilities qualify for benefits under PURPA and how those facilities are compensated (see July 20, 2020 edition of the WER).