Trump to issue executive order limiting states' power to block pipelines
by Josh Siegel
April 09, 2019 08:00 PM President Trump will announce a pair of executive orders on Wednesday to help U.S. energy companies more quickly build pipelines and other infrastructure projects by expediting the environmental review process and by weakening states’ ability to block them.
The Trump administration, acting at the behest of the oil and gas industry, aims to stop liberal states like New York from halting pipeline projects using Section 401 of the Clean Water Act, which requires applicants to prove that potential leaks from an energy infrastructure project would not harm nearby streams or lakes.
Most notably, the state of New York has used that authority to block construction of the 125-mile Constitution Pipeline from Pennsylvania, which would provide natural gas to the state, despite the project earning approval in 2014 from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.
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https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/policy/energy/trump-to-issue-executive-order-limiting-states-power-to-block-pipelines
