FERC Sets Pipeline Precedent On States' Deadlines For CWA Reviews

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has issued a first-of-its-kind decision holding that state officials waited too long in denying a Clean Water Act (CWA) approval for a proposed natural gas pipeline, setting a precedent for similar battles brewing across the country, though the issue is likely headed to federal court. FERC in a Sept. 15 order found that the New York Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), which had rejected a CWA section 401 approval for the Millennium Pipeline Company's...