Wilson Sonsini attorneys Matt Christiansen and Nic Gladd were quoted in a recent Law360 article highlighting key Supreme Court rulings that have the potential to reshape federal environmental reviews and the regulatory landscape for energy projects.

Among the key decisions, the Supreme Court upheld approval for a rail project intended to transport crude oil, effectively limiting the scope of National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) reviews - a decision that emphasizes judicial deference to federal agency evaluations. Matt, a former general counsel of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), stated, "I think it will greatly reduce the risk of a review in court finding that an agency did not adequately perform its NEPA analysis... it bakes so much discretion into the choices an agency gets to make."

Furthermore, the ruling overruled the D.C. Circuit's previous decision requiring FERC to assess downstream greenhouse gas emissions, allowing the agency to narrow its environmental focus. Nic remarked, "That's off the table now, [FERC] can focus on a narrower set of environmental considerations in their pipeline reviews that should streamline that process."

The full article can be found here (subscription required).