Many Americans are often surprised to discover that most rulings made by the U.S. Supreme Court are unanimous. These decisions frequently go unnoticed in the media, mainly because they lack controversy.
Take, for instance, a recent case decided 8-0. On May 29th, the court indicated that it could assist Congress and the Trump administration in expediting permits for U.S. energy projects. This judgment restricts the application of the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), which, over the years, has often been misused to obstruct various significant projects.
The case revolves around the Uinta Basin Railway project, designed to transport oil from the Uinta Basin in Utah to connect with the national railway network. The line runs approximately 100 miles alongside the Colorado River, and in 2023, the D.C. Court of Appeals mandated that the developers undertake a second extended environmental impact study under NEPA to adequately evaluate potential air quality implications. A critical permit was previously granted by federal regulators in 2021.
It’s worth noting that the permit came from the Federal Water Transportation Commission (STB), which had produced a hefty 3,600-page environmental impact statement to align with NEPA requirements. The STB and the company assessed “the potential impact on local water resources, air quality, wildlife, recreation, the economy, Ute Indian tribes, and more.”
However, the plaintiffs and the D.C. Circuit found this extensive 3,600-page scientific evaluation lacking. They argued that the study failed to examine potential effects on numerous other rail lines far away, or even the Gulf Coast of Texas and Louisiana, raising concerns from what they termed the “environmental justice community.”
If the intention was to cause delays, the plaintiffs succeeded, halting four years of progress—unfortunately, this tends to be a common scenario for energy-related projects.
In a unanimous opinion penned by Judge Brett Kavanaugh, the court stated, “The objective of the law is not to paralyze, but to inform agency decisions.”
As I mentioned in a previous piece, the permits have been delayed due to various provisions in significant federal laws aimed at environmental protection, including NEPA, the Clean Air Act, and the Clean Water Act. Of these, NEPA stands out as the one most often misinterpreted and misused by activist courts.
The Energy Institute’s analysis of the ruling expresses concerns that approvals can lead to projects like pipelines and railroads proceeding without being obliged to contemplate their broader environmental consequences, such as increased greenhouse gas emissions. Nonetheless, the author cautions that the Uinta Basin Railway Project might still encounter further legal and regulatory challenges within Colorado.
On a more positive note, even liberal justices on the Supreme Court appear to recognize how unreasonable some claims in such cases can be. The unanimous verdict brings a glimmer of hope that some of the Trump administration’s efforts to reform the system and eliminate its more unjust delays may be successful.
