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Reflections on Water, a website and accompanying podcast dedicated to tracking developments in water law and policy, was recently launched by Troutman Pepper’s highly regarded Water Quality and Water Resources practice. Recognized by Chambers USA, attorneys in this practice have advised clients on virtually every issue related to water quality, from strategic planning to permitting, compliance, enforcement defense, and litigation.
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Continue Reading Troutman Pepper Launches Website and Podcast to Track Developments in Water Law and Policy

On July 16, 2020, the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) published its long-awaited final rule to amend its regulations implementing the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), introducing important changes to the 40-year-old review process. The statute requires federal agencies to take a “hard look” at the environmental impacts of certain proposed projects, but does not mandate any particular outcome. The final rule follows CEQ’s June 2018 Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANOPR) and the January 2020 Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR), which we previously discussed here.
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Continue Reading CEQ Final Rule Overhauls NEPA Regulations

We are excited to introduce you to Troutman Pepper. Effective today, Troutman Sanders and Pepper Hamilton have merged to form a new law firm, Troutman Pepper (Troutman Pepper Hamilton Sanders LLP), with more than 1,100 attorneys in 23 cities across the country. The combination expands both the capabilities and the presence of the firm in the U.S., and notably brings additional resources to the combined firm’s Pipeline and LNG group in the Northeast, Midwest and West Coast.
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Continue Reading Merger Brings Expanded Resources to Leading Pipeline Safety Practice

The U.S. Supreme Court issued its opinion in the consolidated cases U.S. Forest Service v. Cowpasture River Preservation Assn. and Atlantic Coast Pipeline LLC v. Cowpasture River Preservation Assn. addressing the U.S. Forest Service’s authority to issue authorization for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline to cross beneath the Appalachian Trail. Reversing the Fourth Circuit’s December 2018 decision, the Court held that the Forest Service has authority under the Mineral Leasing Act to grant a right-of-way on lands within the George Washington National Forest owned by the Forest Service over which the trail crosses.
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Continue Reading U.S. Supreme Court Reverses Fourth Circuit, Holds U.S. Forest Service Has Authority to Grant Right-of-Way Beneath Appalachian Trail

The U.S. Supreme Court issued its long-awaited opinion in County of Maui v. Hawaii Wildlife Fund, addressing whether the Clean Water Act (CWA) requires a permit when pollutants originate from a point source but are conveyed to navigable waters by a nonpoint source, such as groundwater. In its decision, the Court established a new “functional equivalent” test with potential impacts to pipeline construction projects, ongoing maintenance, and possibly pipeline spills. The application of this new rule, however, is far from straightforward.
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Continue Reading SCOTUS Establishes “Functional Equivalent” Test for Permitting Discharges to Groundwater

In a surprisingly broad decision, the District of Montana vacated the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (“Corps”) Nationwide Permit (“NWP”) 12 on April 15, 2020.  NWP 12 authorizes impacts from “utility line activities” to jurisdictional waters that have minimal individual and cumulative adverse environmental effects. “Utility line” is broadly defined to include pipelines and any…

The Troutman Sanders Corporate team has published the following article on COVID-19:

In a press release dated March 25, 2020, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) Chairman Jay Clayton encouraged “public companies to provide current and forward-looking information to their investors . . .” while continuing to prioritize health and safety during…

The Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) and the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) recently finalized an Annex to a longstanding Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) regarding pipeline safety and security. This Annex comes just weeks after a publicized natural gas pipeline cybersecurity intrusion and responds to several recommendations from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) discussed in our earlier alert to update the prior Annex which had not been reviewed or revised since its inception over 14 years ago. The updated Annex emphasizes information-sharing and coordination between the agencies and signals that the agencies are moving forward on satisfying outstanding GAO recommendations. While this is a step in the right direction, questions remain whether TSA is the appropriate agency to oversee pipeline security and whether existing voluntary standards should be mandatory.
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Continue Reading As Cyberthreats Continue, PHMSA and TSA MOU Stresses Information Sharing and Coordination

The current Administration has focused on reforming federal administrative agency enforcement by emphasizing transparency, due process, and fair notice. The concepts of due process and fair notice are well-established legal precepts, and they are critical to the regulated community. For a variety of reasons, however, administrative agencies may not be consistently adhering to these obligations in practice. Efforts that began with Executive Orders last year continue in 2020 with a recent Office of Management and Budget (OMB) request for comments on improving enforcement processes. Oil and gas industry trade groups and individual operators should take advantage of the OMB’s request for comments to improve enforcement processes at many federal agencies, including the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA). Comments are due by March 16, 2020.
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Continue Reading Administrative Enforcement Reforms Continue

In a decision with significant potential implications for infrastructure construction projects, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia recently remanded, but did not vacate, the Fish and Wildlife Services’ (“FWS”) 2015 decision to list the northern long-eared bat as threatened under the Endangered Species Act (“ESA”). The Court also vacated a component of the FWS and National Marine Fisheries Services’ (collectively, “Services”) significant portion of its range policy (the “SPR Policy”) regarding how to evaluate whether a species is endangered. The SPR Policy, in place since 2014, formed the basis for other listing decisions and its vacatur has implications beyond the long-eared bat.
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Continue Reading Energy Infrastructure Projects Take Heed: FWS Northern Long-Eared Bat Listing Remanded and SPR Policy Vacated