In a significant victory for the hydropower industry, last week the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon issued an order in Cascadia Wildlands v. EWEB (Case No. 6:25-00446), reaffirming that the U.S. courts of appeals, on review of orders of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), have exclusive jurisdiction over controversies related to
Environmental Law & Policy Monitor
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Illegal Eagles: DOI Sinks Its Talons Even Deeper Into Wind Energy
The frenetic pace of anti-renewable actions from the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) has continued into this week with the issuance of a new memorandum from Greg Wischer, deputy chief of staff for policy, directing the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) to ratchet up enforcement of the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act…
Renewables in the Crosshairs: DOI and DOT Announce Numerous New Anti-Wind and Solar Orders and Policies
During the week of July 28, the Trump administration unleashed a new burst of actions aimed squarely at blocking wind and solar energy with the announcement of two new secretarial orders (SO) and three new policies by the Department of the Interior (DOI), plus one from the Department of Transportation (DOT). These latest measures follow…
CARB Releases FAQs Addressing Upcoming California Climate Disclosures
On July 9, 2025, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) released a series of frequently asked questions (FAQs) related to its efforts to implement California’s landmark climate disclosure laws, SB 253 (requiring reporting of GHG emissions) and SB 261 (requiring disclosure of climate-related financial risks). Although draft implementing regulations are not anticipated before December…
FERC Revises Regulations Implementing NEPA; Adopts Two Hydropower-Related Categorical Exclusions
On July 3, 2025, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a final rule revising its regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) to remove references to the recently rescinded regulations implementing NEPA originally promulgated in 1978 by the White House’s Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). On the same day, FERC issued…
Well, Well: Outlook for CCUS Projects in Texas Improves as EPA Proposes to Delegate Permitting Authority and the Texas Supreme Court Clarifies Pore Space Ownership
On June 17, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published a proposed rule to approve Texas’s application for primary permitting and enforcement responsibility (primacy) for carbon dioxide (CO2) sequestration wells pursuant to the Safe Drinking Water Act’s (SDWA) Class VI Underground Injection Control (UIC) Program. Upon approval of the rule, the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC)…
Texas Legislature Tilts Against Windmills: Is This the End of Wind Energy on the Texas Coast?
By Ben Cowan
Much has been written in recent weeks about how the renewable energy industry in Texas dodged a bullet — several bullets actually — when three high-profile bills targeting the industry failed to pass in the recent legislative session that ended June 2. Indeed, each of those bills, S.B. 819, S.B. 388, and S.B. 715, would…
Déjà vu? FWS Solicits Feedback to Update Section 10(a) of the ESA
On Monday, June 9, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) opened a short, 30-day public comment period soliciting information and comments to, “improve the overall efficiency and effectiveness” of Section 10(a) take permitting under the Endangered Species Act (ESA). If it seems like Section 10(a) just underwent a comment period not too long ago,…
CARB Workshop on Climate Disclosure Laws: More Questions Than Answers
On May 29, 2025, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) held a virtual public workshop to review and discuss its rulemaking response to California Senate Bills (SBs) 253, 261, and 219, which require companies that “do business in California” and meet certain revenue thresholds to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and…
One-Track Mind: Unanimous SCOTUS Decision on Rail Line Approval Further Narrows Scope of NEPA
On May 29, the Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion in Seven County Infrastructure Coalition v. Eagle County, Colorado that dramatically changes the way courts scrutinize federal agencies’ environmental reviews under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Justice Brett Kavanaugh, writing for a five-justice conservative majority (with Justice Neil Gorsuch abstaining), held that (a) courts…