Sierra Club v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission

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On March 14, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued an order reinstating the certificate of public convenience and necessity for the Southeast Market Pipelines Project. FERC said its quantification of downstream greenhouse gas emissions did not alter its conclusion that the project was an environmentally acceptable action. FERC’s supplemental environmental impact statement concluded that there was no way to determine the significance of the project’s emissions using either the social cost of carbon tool—which FERC said was “not useful in determining whether, and under what conditions, to authorize a proposed natural gas transportation project”—or other methodologies. Two FERC commissioners dissented: one commissioner agreed that the project was in the public interest but said FERC needs to “more squarely address” greenhouse gas emissions and the social cost of carbon; the other dissenting commissioner said that FERC’s order on remand failed to provide a “reasoned answer” to the inquiries required by the D.C. Circuit’s August 2017 decision.

After denying rehearing of its decision ordering additional environmental review of greenhouse gas emissions associated with the Southeast Market Pipelines Project, the D.C. Circuit on March 7 granted FERC’s motion to stay issuance of the mandate. The D.C. Circuit ordered that the mandate be withheld through March 26, 2018. The D.C. Circuit denied the pipeline developer’s motion for a longer stay.

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