Sierra Club v. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Rural Utilities Service

A federal district court in the District of Columbia held that the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Rural Utilities Service cannot issue any approvals or arrangements directly related to the project until an environmental impact statement (EIS) is complete. The court had held in March 2011 that the Service violated the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) by failing to prepare an EIS in connection with its involvement in the expansion of a coal-fired power plant in Kansas. The court held that because the Service provided approvals and financial support to the project, its involvement amounted to a “major federal action” within the meaning of NEPA. 

The court granted a summary judgment motion by the Sierra Club, holding that the defendants should have prepared an environmental impact statement concerning the use of low-interest loans to finance the construction of new generating units at a coal-fired power plant in western Kansas.

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