Archive | FERC

New Challenge to Takings for Natural Gas Pipelines

An article published by the E&E News written by Niina H. Farah on December 16, 2021 reported an argument before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia.  The lawsuit was brought by homeowners located along the route of the Mountain Valley Pipeline alleging that it is unconstitutional for the Federal Energy Regulation Commission (FERC) to delegate it eminent domain authority to pipeline developers. The legislation at issue in the case is the Natural Gas Act, which extends the federal government’s authority to condemn private land for public… read more

Posted in FERC, PennEast Pipeline, Pipelines
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An 800-Megawatt Surprise – Destroying a Community

One of the nice things about writing a blog is that your readers send you ideas for your next article.  This one is a doozey. There is an 800-megawatt hydroelectric project for New York which is proposed by Premium Energy Holdings of California.  The proposal calls for the Ashokan Reservoir water and its existing dam to be used as a lower reservoir in a pumped storage power plant facility. The project’s preliminary permit application is before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The reservoir proposal has been called “devastating.”  Local officials,… read more

Posted in Condemnation, FERC, Hydroelectric Power Plant, Reservoir
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The Court of Appeals Upholds a Pipeline that May Never Be Built

The Court of Appeals handed down a 25-page decision on June 25, 2020 that approved the condemnation of private property for a pipeline that may never be built. In 2017, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission issued a Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity to National Fuel Gas Supply for its proposed construction of a 99-mile natural gas pipeline spanning from Pennsylvania to Western New York. The issue before New York’s highest court was did the Certificate of Public Convenience and Necessity which did not condition Natural Fuel’s eminent domain power… read more

Posted in EDPL 204(B), FERC, Pipelines, Water Quality Certificate
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