Proof in Trial: Appellate Edition: Stand Up for California et al. v. U.S. Department of the Interior et al.
In a significant move to accelerate domestic energy development, the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) has announced emergency permitting procedures that will dramatically compress environmental review timelines. Under...more
On Wednesday, April 16, Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum directed the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) to order Equinor to “stop work” on its 812 megawatt Empire Wind 1 project just outside of New York Harbor....more
On March 20, 2025, President Trump signed an Executive Order (“EO”) entitled Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production. The EO builds on previous energy-focused actions taken by the Administration, and...more
On March 20, 2025, the Trump administration invoked emergency powers in an Executive Order (EO) entitled Immediate Measures to Increase American Mineral Production, aiming to accelerate domestic mineral mining and processing....more
The order aims to coordinate government efforts to fast-track permitting and accelerate funding to enhance critical minerals value chains from the mine to finished products....more
Wind energy projects along the coasts are facing uncertainty due to President Trump’s Presidential Memorandum issued on January 20, “Temporary Withdrawal of All Areas on the Outer Continental Shelf from Offshore Wind Leasing...more
Date Issued: Jan. 20, 2025 This executive order temporarily halts all offshore wind energy leasing within the Offshore Continental Shelf (OCS). It aims to address concerns related to marine life, ocean currents, wind...more
On President Trump’s first and second days in office, the new administration released a flurry of executive actions, in the form of both memorandums and executive orders, focused on the energy industry:...more
The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) has recently introduced a significant policy shift aimed at streamlining the permitting process for mineral projects on public lands. With the launch of the new “pre-plan coordination”...more
The permitting process has been identified by numerous commentators as a major cause of delays in the development of energy, infrastructure, and mining projects in the United States. ...more
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (“FERC”) addressed in an April 25th Order an application for a preliminary permit submitted by Pumped Hydro Storage LLC (“Pumped Hydro”) to study the feasibility of the Big Canyon...more
This article is part of Womble Bond Dickinson’s Energy & Natural Resources thought leadership series titled Striking the Balance: Permitting Reforms for Mining and the Energy Transition. In this series, we’ll explore the...more
In Environmental Defense Center et al. v. BOEM et al (No. 19-55526), the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit on June 3, 2022, invalidated the U.S. Department of Interior's issuance of dozens of permits for well...more
The EO directs federal agencies to invoke available emergency powers to expedite environmental review and permitting of infrastructure projects. A recent Executive Order by President Trump directs agencies to expedite...more
The United States Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) of the United States Department of Interior (“DOI”) issued a July 2019 report titled: The NPS Needs to Improve Management of Commercial Cellular Facilities’...more
United States of America v. Osage Wind, LLC et al., 871 F.3d 1078 2017 WL 4109940 (10th Cir. Sept. 18, 2017). Causing heartburn for project applicants developing on tribal land, the Tenth Circuit reversed the District Court...more
• The Trump Administration released an ambitious $1.5 trillion infrastructure plan on Feb. 12, 2018 – a plan that includes many provisions focused upon encouraging the reuse of contaminated brownfields and Superfund sites. ...more
On July 7, the U.S. District Court for Alaska decided the case of Castle Mountain Coalition, et al., v. Office of Surface Mining Reclamation and Enforcement, alaskaholding that a mining permit issued under the Surface Mining...more
In This Issue: Environmental and Policy Focus - EPA proposes rules to lower sulfur in fuel; Home Depot pays $8 million to settle California paint lawsuit; Center for Biological Diversity sues federal government over...more