Energy and Environment MonitorIT’S TIME TO CLARIFY WHAT CONSTITUTES A “POINT SOURCE”June 7, 2017 Another Clean Water Act Definition Is Being Stretched To Its Limits When Congress passed the Clean Water Act (“CWA”), it drew a bright line: discharges of pollutants into “Waters of the United States” from “point sources” were declared illegal unless the discharger obtained a CWA permit. It seemed so simple. But it turned out not to be. The definition of “Waters… “What Goes Down Will Come Up”June 5, 2017 The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth circuit issued an opinion on May 22nd which illustrates the difficulty for an oil and gas producer to win a subsurface claim without having to go to trial, even when the plaintiff has relatively weak facts to support its claim. The case involved the disposal of fracking wastes from producing shale oil in the Eastern District of Arkansas. Because the… UTILITY GROUPS ASK EPA TO MODIFY COAL ASH RULE AND TO EXTEND COMPLIANCE DEADLINESMay 18, 2017
Murray Energy Companies Sue the New York Times Company for DefamationMay 11, 2017 On May 3, 2017, Murray Energy Corporation and five of its subsidiaries operating coal mines in West Virginia filed suit in West Virginia state court against The New York Times Company alleging that the Times published false and defamatory statements that injured the reputation and business of the Murray Energy. The subject statements were made in an op-ed article entitled “Money Talked… Delaware Riverkeeper Asks Third Circuit to Expedite Review of Corps-Issued Permit for PipelineMay 9, 2017 We have written before about the effect of the Natural Gas Act on environmental permits issued for pipelines. Generally, the Natural Gas Act preempts the effect of many local laws on pipelines, but preserves obligations to obtain permits under the Clean Air and Clean Water Acts. Nonetheless, in 2005, Congress amended the Natural Gas Act to provide that challenges to those permits are to be heard… EPA Reconsidering Methane RuleMay 4, 2017 In an April 18, 2017 letter to oil and gas industry leaders, Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) Administrator Scott Pruitt announced that the agency will reconsider its June 3, 2016 methane emissions rule following a petition from three oil and gas industry associations. See EPA Letter here. The industry petition raised objections concerning provisions for receiving an alternative… Federal Court in Oregon Rules that EPA Approval of State-Issued TMDLs Can Be an Affirmative Action Triggering Section 7 Consultation Under the Endangered Species ActMay 2, 2017 Section 7 of the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”) requires federal agencies which have undertaken “any action authorized, funded or carried out by such agency” to consult with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to ensure that such action is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of a protected species. See 16 U.S.C. § 1536(a)(2). Likewise, USF&WS’s rules provide that each… South Carolina Federal Court Upholds Distinction Between Point Source and Non-Point Source PollutionApril 25, 2017 On April 20, 2017, a South Carolina federal district court dismissed an environmental group’s Clean Water Act (“CWA”) citizen suit against Plantation Pipe Line Company, Inc. (“PPL”) and its parent company, Kinder Morgan Energy Partner, L.P. PPL owns a 3,100 mile petroleum pipeline that leaked 369,000 gallons in December 2014. The leak was repaired within a few days of… Federal court in Pennsylvania Invalidates Township Ordinance Prohibiting Oil and Gas Waste DisposalApril 13, 2017 By opinion of March 31, 2017, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania invalidated an ordinance adopted by Pennsylvania’s Grant Township. The Township’s “Community Bill of Rights Ordinance” prohibited corporations from “engaging in the depositing of waste from oil and gas extraction” and invalidated any “permit, license, privilege, charter or other authority issued… Maryland General Assembly Bans FrackingApril 6, 2017 Prior law in Maryland required its Department of the Environment to adopt a regulation by October 1, 2016 for the hydraulic fracturing of wells for exploration or production of natural gas, but provided they would not become effective until October 1, 2017. Further, the Department was prohibited from issuing fracking permits until October 2017. A new bill passed by both the House and Senate of the… COLORADO COURT’S SELECTIVE USE OF STATUTORY CONSTRUCTION PRINCIPLES TILTS OIL AND GAS DEVELOPMENT CASE IN YOUTH ENVIRONMENTALISTS’ FAVORApril 4, 2017 On March 23, 2017, the Colorado Court of Appeals issued a decision that has the potential to make future oil and gas development in the State very difficult, if not impossible. See Martinez v. Colorado Oil & Gas Conservation Comm., No. 16-CA-0564, Opinion. In what is becoming something of a trend of activist groups bringing legal actions purportedly on behalf of minors (see also … EPA Withdraws 2016 Information Request on Methane Emissions from the Oil and Gas IndustryMarch 16, 2017 On November 10, 2016, EPA issued Information Collection Request requiring oil and natural gas companies to provide extensive information that EPA desired to develop regulations for reducing methane emissions from existing oil and gas sources. The information request was sent to more than 15,000 owners and operators in the oil and gas industry. The request was comprised of two parts: An… |
|
© 2025 Jackson Kelly PLLC. All Rights Reserved.