The lawsuit challenging the FERC certificate for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) has finally been scheduled for briefs to be filed by April 5.  The suit, which was filed August 16 with the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals but was re-assigned to the DC Circuit Court of Appeals, was brought on behalf of a group of ABRA member organizations and other plaintiffs.  The plaintiffs are represented by Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) and Appalachian Mountain Advocates (Appalmad).  Arguments before the court are not expected to be scheduled until sometime in the Fall.

Here’s a brief status report on two other pending cases that challenge ACP permits:

  • Forest Service – The challenge to the U.S. Forest Service’s issuance of a Special Use Permit for the ACP on January 23 was filed February 5, 2018 with the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. Plaintiffs are a group of ABRA members and others, represented by SELC and Appalmad. The Fourth Circuit vacated the permit in a December 13 decision, thus denying the ACP the right to cross the Appalachian National Scenic Trail (ANST), which the Court said the U.S. Forest Service lacked the legal authority to grant.  An appeal of that ruling to the entire Fourth Circuit (an en banc hearing before all fifteen of the Court’s judges) was denied on February 25.  Dominion Energy has said it will appeal the decision by late May to the U.S. Supreme Court.  That appeal has not yet been made.  It is worth noting that only about one percent of the cases that are appealed to the Supreme Court are heard.
    In the meantime, Dominion has been lobbying Congress since the Fourth Circuit’s December decision to have language added to pending legislation that would override the Court’s vacating of the Forest Service permit to cross the ANST.  To date, those lobbying efforts have not succeeded.  ABRA asks that contacts be made with Members of Congress to urge them to oppose such an action.  For the Action Alert, click here.
  • Air Permit for Buckingham Compressor Station – The January 8 decision by the Virginia Air Pollution Control Board to grant an air permit for the proposed ACP compressor station in Buckingham County, VA was challenged in a lawsuit filed with the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals by the Southern Environmental Law Center on behalf of Friends of Buckingham. A proposed briefing schedule for the case will be filed in early May, with arguments in the case not likely until sometime this Fall.
Who’s on First? – A Round-up of Legal Challenges to the ACP
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