Judges Appear Skeptical Of Environmentalists’ Challenge To LNG Review

D.C. Circuit judges appeared skeptical during Oct. 21 arguments of environmentalists’ challenge to the Energy Department’s (DOE) climate analysis of a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export project, suggesting they believe officials sufficiently grappled with uncertainties about what would replace the project’s fuel if it were not built. Assessment of this “substitution effect” -- or whether a project’s LNG would otherwise be replaced by coal, other gas supplies, renewables, conservation efforts, or some other source -- is a crucial element of...