Arch Coal, Inc. v. Acosta
The D.C. Circuit held that a mining company must exhaust its administrative remedies before it can challenge potential claims filed against it under the Black Lung Benefits Act (BLBA). The BLBA grants coal miners the right to monthly benefits payments from a former employer in the event they suffer ...
M.L. Johnson Family Properties, LLC v. Zinke
A district court upheld a surface coal mining permit issued to a company even though the cotenant objected to any mining on the property. The company cotenant conveyed the right to enter and surface mine coal to an affiliate, but the other cotenant did not consent to surface mining. Nevertheless, th...
NRDC v. NRC
The D.C. Circuit denied environmentalists' attempt to challenge an NRC decision to issue a uranium mining license in Wyoming. The mining company sought a license from NRC to mine uranium at the Ross Project in Crook County, Wyoming. NRC conducted an EIS and granted the license. Environmental groups ...
The Trump Administration’s First Steps Toward Streamlining Environmental Reviews
On August 15, 2017, President Donald Trump issued an Executive Order entitled “Establishing Discipline and Accountability in the Environmental Review and Permitting Process for Infrastructure Projects," which seeks to expedite federal review and approval of infrastructure projects by imposing new timelines and procedures, including a two-year deadline for completing reviews under NEPA and issuing permits for major infrastructure projects.