Sierra Club v. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission
United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
827 F.3d 36 (2016)

- Written by Sean Carroll, JD
Facts
Freeport LNG Development, L.P. (Freeport) operated a liquified-natural-gas import facility in Brazoria County, Texas. Freeport petitioned the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) (defendant) to modify and expand the facility to expand its exporting operations. As part of FERC’s review under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), FERC prepared an environmental-impact statement (EIS). The EIS set the geographic area for the review as Brazoria County. FERC issued an order approving Freeport’s petition. The Sierra Club (plaintiff) filed a petition for review of the order in federal court. The Sierra Club argued that FERC should have set the relevant geographic area for its review as the entire United States to take into account other pending and approved liquified-natural-gas projects nationwide.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Millett, J.)
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