In re Valley Lateral Project

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation denied an application for a Water Quality Certificate under Section 401 of the Clean Water Act and state permits for a natural gas pipeline project. DEC said FERC’s environmental review of the project was inadequate due to the D.C. Circuit’s decision in Sierra Club v. FERC, No. 16-1329 (D.C. Cir. Aug. 22, 2017), in which the D.C. Circuit found that FERC should have considered the downstream greenhouse gas emissions from combustion of natural gas transported by another pipeline project. NYSDEC said FERC had not conducted such an analysis for the New York pipeline project and that the D.C. Circuit’s decision was a material change in applicable law warranting denial of the application. NYSDEC also submitted a motion to FERC for reopening or rehearing and staying the project.