A February 25 public hearing on changes to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) elicited strong opposition from many witnesses, as well as protests outside of the hearing room by environmental activists and at least one Member of Congress, Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE), ranking member of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. The hearing was held in Washington, DC before a panel of staff of the President’s Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ). An earlier public hearing was held in Denver, CO on February 11.
The proposed NEPA changes, announced on January 9, would substantially weaken many protections in the environmental review process that such projects as the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) are required to undergo. Shortcomings in various NEPA required reviews for the ACP are a prime reason for many of the permits the project has lost in court.
For more on the February 25 CEQ hearing, click here.