![\"earthworks](\"https:\/\/westernlaw.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/09\/Earthworks-Logo.png\"){kind=logo}
<\/a><\/p>\n![\"montana](\"https:\/\/westernlaw.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/02\/MEIC-Logo.png\"){kind=logo}
<\/a><\/div>\n![\"Wildearth](\"https:\/\/westernlaw.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/Wildearth-Guardians-Logo.png\"){kind=logo}
<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Related Documents” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
Related Documents<\/h2>\n\n- MT Oil & Gas Appeal Notice Filed 8.1.13<\/a><\/li>\n
- MT Oil & Gas Lease Dismissal 6.14.2013<\/a><\/li>\n
- MT Oil & Gas Lease Round 2 Complaint Filed 2.7.2011<\/a><\/li>\n
- MT Oil & Gas Lease Settlement Agreement with BLM 3.11.2010<\/a><\/li>\n
- MT Oil & Gas Lease Complaint Filed 1.15.2009<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Staff” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
Staff<\/h3>\n
Erik Schlenker-Goodrich: Bio<\/a> | Docket<\/a><\/p>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Section” fullwidth=”off” specialty=”off” transparent_background=”off” allow_player_pause=”off” inner_shadow=”off” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”off” custom_padding_tablet=”30px||40px|” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|desktop” make_fullwidth=”off” use_custom_width=”off” width_unit=”on” make_equal=”off” use_custom_gutter=”off” disabled_on=”on|on|on” disabled=”on” collapsed=”on”][et_pb_row admin_label=”Row” make_fullwidth=”off” use_custom_width=”off” width_unit=”on” use_custom_gutter=”off” custom_padding=”0px||0px|” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|phone” allow_player_pause=”off” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”off” make_equal=”off” parallax_1=”off” parallax_method_1=”off”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Project Updates” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
Project Updates<\/h2>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_blog admin_label=”Latest 5 Posts” fullwidth=”on” posts_number=”5″ show_thumbnail=”off” show_content=”off” show_more=”off” show_author=”off” show_date=”off” show_categories=”off” show_comments=”off” show_pagination=”on” offset_number=”0″ use_overlay=”off” background_layout=”light” use_dropshadow=”off” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” include_categories=”139″ \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” disabled_on=”on|on|on” disabled=”on” collapsed=”on”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text”]<\/p>\n
\n2017.02.24-KSNM Intervene OR Mtn and Memo.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n2017.02.24-KSNM Intervene Memo.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\nPresident Clinton designated the Klamath-Siskiyou National Monument in 2000. It is the first and only national monument specifically established to
\nprotect biological diversity. But ecologists agreed after the designation that many of the most important parts of the region were excluded from the monument’s boundaries. In 2015, 85 scientists concerned about increasing
\nthreats to the area signed a letter urging monument expansion in to better
\nprotect and connect important habitats for the monument\u2019s spectacular variety
\nof plants and animals \u201cwhose survival in the region,\u201d according the monument\u2019s
\noriginal proclamation, \u201cdepends upon its continued ecological integrity.\u201d In January 2017, President Obama expanded the monument to include these ecologically important areas.<\/span><\/p>\nSoon after, a timber company and the Association of O&C Counties, keen on logging, filed separate lawsuits suggesting an obscure law requires the area be logged and supersedes the Antiquities Act, used to designate and expand the monument. They’re wrong, and we’re representing the Soda Mountain Wilderness Council, Klamath-Siskiyou Wild, Oregon Wild, and the Wilderness Society, defending the monument from this industry attack.<\/p>\n
(WELC project #484)<\/em><\/p>\n![](\"https:\/\/westernlaw.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/KSNM-thumb.jpg\")
<\/div>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” disabled_on=”on|on|on” disabled=”on” collapsed=”on”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text”]<\/p>\n
\n2013.07.23 Coal Train ED_WA Complaint Final.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\nED.Order on MTD.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n60 Day Notice Letter.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n2013.6.4 Complaint_final.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n100_158_CoalDust_FactSht_04_X1A__2_.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\nWELC and its partners have filed two lawsuits against Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Company (BNSF) and several coal companies for violations of the federal Clean Water Act pertaining to the companies\u2019 emission of coal into waterways in several locations across Washington.<\/p>\n
These companies use open-top rail cars, which lose huge volumes of coal dust during transportation \u2013 an average of 500 pounds of coal per rail car per train trip. Each train is composed of 120 cars or more, which adds up to 30 tons of lost coal per train. Investigations undertaken by our clients have turned up coal chunks and particles from rail cars in Washington\u2019s waters.<\/p>\n
Approximately 90% of BNSF’s annual coal shipments are from coal mines in the Powder River Basin (PRB) located in Wyoming and Montana. PRB coal breaks apart easily and contains mercury, arsenic, uranium, and hundreds of other toxins harmful to fish and human health. Additionally, PRB coal dust falls onto train tracks, contributing to track destabilization and dangerous train derailments.<\/p>\n
On June 5, 2013,\u00a0WELC attorney Andrea Rodgers and partners filed the suit in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington in Seattle, where coal dust has been identified in and along multiple waterways including the Pugent Sound. On July 24, 2013, we filed another lawsuit in\u00a0U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington in Spokane, where coal dust has been identified in and along multiple waterways including the Spokane and Columbia Rivers.<\/p>\n
Under the Clean Water Act, anyone discharging pollutants into U.S. waters must first obtain what is known as a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. BNSF does not have such a permit.<\/p>\n
Our partners in these lawsuits are the Sierra Club, Puget Soundkeeper, Columbia Riverkeeper, RE Sources for Sustainable Communities, and Friends of the Columbia Gorge. NRDC and Spokane Riverkeeper joined the lawsuit filed in Eastern Washington.<\/p>\n
In addition to WELC, the plaintiffs are represented by the Law Offices of Charles M. Tebbutt, P.C. of Eugene, OR; Jessica Yarnall Loarie of the Sierra Club Law Program; and David Pettit and Morgan Wyenn of the Natural Resources Defense Council.<\/p>\n
Updates:<\/p>\n
1.02.14: A federal judge in Spokane, Washington denies BNSF’s motion to dismiss our lawsuit aimed at holding them accountable for toxic coal dust that is released from uncovered coal cars polluting Washington’s waterways in violation of the Clean Water Act.<\/p>\n
3.12.14: Victory! A second federal judge – this one in Seattle, Washington – denied BNSF’s motion to dismiss our lawsuit aimed at holding them accountable for toxic coal dust that is released from uncovered coal cars polluting Washington’s waterways in violation of the Clean Water Act. In January, another federal judge denied BNSF’s attempt to thrown out a similar lawsuit that we filed in Spokane, Washington.<\/p>\n
(WELC project #705)<\/em><\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/westernlaw.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/coal)
<\/div>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” disabled_on=”on|on|on” disabled=”on” collapsed=”on”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text”]<\/p>\n
\n2015.08.31-Oil_and_Gas_Lease_Standing_Memo.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\nMT Oil & Gas Appeal Notice Filed 8.1.13.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\nMT Oil & Gas Lease Dismissal 6.14.2013.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\nMT Oil & Gas Lease Settlement Agreement with BLM 3.11.2010.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\nMT Oil & Gas Lease Round 2 Complaint Filed 2.7.2011.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\nMT Oil & Gas Lease Complaint Filed 1.15.2009.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/span><\/p>\nIn Montana, leaky oil & gas drilling operations on public lands emit 1.8 billion cubic feet of methane (and perhaps far more) to the atmosphere each year.<\/p>\n
Over a 20-year lifetime of development, keeping this methane out of the atmosphere would be the equivalent of an additional $180 million dollars in natural gas sales \u2013 or the same as eliminating the carbon dioxide emissions from the electricity use of approximately 95,000 homes over that same time period.<\/p>\n
Working with our allies at the Montana Environmental Information Center, Earthworks\u2019 Oil & Gas Accountability Project, and WildEarth Guardians, we used our legal skills to force BLM to suspend its oil & gas leasing program pending an evaluation of climate change, recommending to BLM that readily-available greenhouse gas reduction technologies should be a required condition of owning an oil & gas lease.<\/p>\n
Update:<\/p>\n
December 2010: BLM completed the environmental reviews, using them
\nnot only to justify the decision to lift the suspension but, further, to
\nexecute an additional 53 oil and gas leases in Montana totaling 33,257
\nacres. Unfortunately, these reviews are deeply inadequate. So, once
\nagain, we filed suit using our legal skills to force BLM to accurately
\nevaluate the combined impacts of oil & gas development and climate
\nchange to wildlands, habitats and communities.<\/p>\n
February 2011: We filed a second legal challenge in federal court against the
\nBureau of Land Management\u2019s decision to lift a suspension on 25,329
\nacres of oil and gas leases in Montana and are awaiting a court
\ndate.\u00a0Fortunately, there has been no drilling activity yet on the 120
\nleases in dispute.<\/p>\n
Our court hearing occured on\u00a0May 24, 2013. WELC attorney Shiloh
\nHernandez argued that the federal government should have forced
\ncompanies to reduce emissions from oil and gas fields as a condition of
\nleasing.<\/p>\n
August 2013: Our lawsuit to block almost 80,000 acres of oil and gas leases on public lands in Montana, in an effort to force the federal government to require that drilling companies reduce greenhouse gas emissions, was dismissed. U.S. District Judge Sam Haddon ruled that the emissions from future drilling activities would be too small \u2014 only a fraction of 1 percent of total emissions in the state \u2014 to make a “meaningful contribution” to global greenhouse gas levels. We remain committed to reducing methane emissions from oil and gas drilling on public lands, and we appealed this to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.<\/p>\n
June 2015: We had oral argument in Seattle before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and are awaiting the decision. You can view the oral argument here: http:\/\/www.ca9.uscourts.gov\/media\/<\/a><\/p>\nSeptember 2015: The Ninth Circuit issued a ruling on our climate standing appeal. The court vacated the district court\u2019s decision granting summary judgment to defendants based on a previous ruling that our clients lack standing.<\/p>\n
In the decision, the court makes a clear statement that local impacts are sufficient to establish standing to raise National Environmental Policy Act climate arguments. The Court wrote: \u201cAlthough Appellants\u2019 claims of procedural error relate to the government\u2019s alleged failure to consider climate-change effects, Appellants\u2019 injuries which resulted from that error need not. For standing, it matters only whether the challenged governmental action would cause the plaintiff a concrete and redressable injury.\u201d<\/p>\n
This is an important decision in light of prior Ninth Circuit case law limiting the ability to litigate against actions that contribute to climate change. While the decision is a memorandum opinion without binding effect in the Ninth Circuit, it has persuasive value.<\/p>\n
Now we proceed back to district court where we will try to use NEPA to force BLM to address the serious problem of vented, flared, and leaked methane emissions from oil and gas operations in Montana. This ties in with our other work on upcoming BLM rules to reduce methane waste on public lands, and if we prevail, we hope this case will complement that work by setting a national precedent.<\/p>\n
(WELC project #673)<\/em><\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/westernlaw.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/Raynolds)
<\/div>\n[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Montana Oil & Gas Drilling Lease Climate Challenge In Montana, leaky oil & gas drilling operations on public lands emit 1.8 billion cubic feet of methane (and perhaps far more) to the atmosphere each year. Over a 20-year lifetime of development, keeping this methane out of the atmosphere would be the equivalent of an additional […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":5836,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"
2015.08.31-Oil_and_Gas_Lease_Standing_Memo.pdf<\/a><\/p>\u00a0<\/div>MT Oil & Gas Appeal Notice Filed 8.1.13.pdf<\/a><\/p>\u00a0<\/div>MT Oil & Gas Lease Dismissal 6.14.2013.pdf<\/a><\/p>\u00a0<\/div>MT Oil & Gas Lease Settlement Agreement with BLM 3.11.2010.pdf<\/a><\/p>\u00a0<\/div>MT Oil & Gas Lease Round 2 Complaint Filed 2.7.2011.pdf<\/a><\/p>
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Staff” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n
Staff<\/h3>\n
Erik Schlenker-Goodrich: Bio<\/a> | Docket<\/a><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Section” fullwidth=”off” specialty=”off” transparent_background=”off” allow_player_pause=”off” inner_shadow=”off” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”off” custom_padding_tablet=”30px||40px|” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|desktop” make_fullwidth=”off” use_custom_width=”off” width_unit=”on” make_equal=”off” use_custom_gutter=”off” disabled_on=”on|on|on” disabled=”on” collapsed=”on”][et_pb_row admin_label=”Row” make_fullwidth=”off” use_custom_width=”off” width_unit=”on” use_custom_gutter=”off” custom_padding=”0px||0px|” custom_padding_last_edited=”on|phone” allow_player_pause=”off” parallax=”off” parallax_method=”off” make_equal=”off” parallax_1=”off” parallax_method_1=”off”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Project Updates” background_layout=”light” text_orientation=”left” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid”]<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_blog admin_label=”Latest 5 Posts” fullwidth=”on” posts_number=”5″ show_thumbnail=”off” show_content=”off” show_more=”off” show_author=”off” show_date=”off” show_categories=”off” show_comments=”off” show_pagination=”on” offset_number=”0″ use_overlay=”off” background_layout=”light” use_dropshadow=”off” use_border_color=”off” border_color=”#ffffff” border_style=”solid” include_categories=”139″ \/][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” disabled_on=”on|on|on” disabled=”on” collapsed=”on”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text”]<\/p>\n 2017.02.24-KSNM Intervene OR Mtn and Memo.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n 2017.02.24-KSNM Intervene Memo.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n President Clinton designated the Klamath-Siskiyou National Monument in 2000. It is the first and only national monument specifically established to Soon after, a timber company and the Association of O&C Counties, keen on logging, filed separate lawsuits suggesting an obscure law requires the area be logged and supersedes the Antiquities Act, used to designate and expand the monument. They’re wrong, and we’re representing the Soda Mountain Wilderness Council, Klamath-Siskiyou Wild, Oregon Wild, and the Wilderness Society, defending the monument from this industry attack.<\/p>\n (WELC project #484)<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” disabled_on=”on|on|on” disabled=”on” collapsed=”on”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text”]<\/p>\n 2013.07.23 Coal Train ED_WA Complaint Final.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n ED.Order on MTD.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n 60 Day Notice Letter.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n 2013.6.4 Complaint_final.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n 100_158_CoalDust_FactSht_04_X1A__2_.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n WELC and its partners have filed two lawsuits against Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway Company (BNSF) and several coal companies for violations of the federal Clean Water Act pertaining to the companies\u2019 emission of coal into waterways in several locations across Washington.<\/p>\n These companies use open-top rail cars, which lose huge volumes of coal dust during transportation \u2013 an average of 500 pounds of coal per rail car per train trip. Each train is composed of 120 cars or more, which adds up to 30 tons of lost coal per train. Investigations undertaken by our clients have turned up coal chunks and particles from rail cars in Washington\u2019s waters.<\/p>\n Approximately 90% of BNSF’s annual coal shipments are from coal mines in the Powder River Basin (PRB) located in Wyoming and Montana. PRB coal breaks apart easily and contains mercury, arsenic, uranium, and hundreds of other toxins harmful to fish and human health. Additionally, PRB coal dust falls onto train tracks, contributing to track destabilization and dangerous train derailments.<\/p>\n On June 5, 2013,\u00a0WELC attorney Andrea Rodgers and partners filed the suit in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington in Seattle, where coal dust has been identified in and along multiple waterways including the Pugent Sound. On July 24, 2013, we filed another lawsuit in\u00a0U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington in Spokane, where coal dust has been identified in and along multiple waterways including the Spokane and Columbia Rivers.<\/p>\n Under the Clean Water Act, anyone discharging pollutants into U.S. waters must first obtain what is known as a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. BNSF does not have such a permit.<\/p>\n Our partners in these lawsuits are the Sierra Club, Puget Soundkeeper, Columbia Riverkeeper, RE Sources for Sustainable Communities, and Friends of the Columbia Gorge. NRDC and Spokane Riverkeeper joined the lawsuit filed in Eastern Washington.<\/p>\n In addition to WELC, the plaintiffs are represented by the Law Offices of Charles M. Tebbutt, P.C. of Eugene, OR; Jessica Yarnall Loarie of the Sierra Club Law Program; and David Pettit and Morgan Wyenn of the Natural Resources Defense Council.<\/p>\n Updates:<\/p>\n 1.02.14: A federal judge in Spokane, Washington denies BNSF’s motion to dismiss our lawsuit aimed at holding them accountable for toxic coal dust that is released from uncovered coal cars polluting Washington’s waterways in violation of the Clean Water Act.<\/p>\n 3.12.14: Victory! A second federal judge – this one in Seattle, Washington – denied BNSF’s motion to dismiss our lawsuit aimed at holding them accountable for toxic coal dust that is released from uncovered coal cars polluting Washington’s waterways in violation of the Clean Water Act. In January, another federal judge denied BNSF’s attempt to thrown out a similar lawsuit that we filed in Spokane, Washington.<\/p>\n (WELC project #705)<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section bb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” disabled_on=”on|on|on” disabled=”on” collapsed=”on”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text”]<\/p>\n 2015.08.31-Oil_and_Gas_Lease_Standing_Memo.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n MT Oil & Gas Appeal Notice Filed 8.1.13.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n MT Oil & Gas Lease Dismissal 6.14.2013.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n MT Oil & Gas Lease Settlement Agreement with BLM 3.11.2010.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n MT Oil & Gas Lease Round 2 Complaint Filed 2.7.2011.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n MT Oil & Gas Lease Complaint Filed 1.15.2009.pdf<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n In Montana, leaky oil & gas drilling operations on public lands emit 1.8 billion cubic feet of methane (and perhaps far more) to the atmosphere each year.<\/p>\n Over a 20-year lifetime of development, keeping this methane out of the atmosphere would be the equivalent of an additional $180 million dollars in natural gas sales \u2013 or the same as eliminating the carbon dioxide emissions from the electricity use of approximately 95,000 homes over that same time period.<\/p>\n Working with our allies at the Montana Environmental Information Center, Earthworks\u2019 Oil & Gas Accountability Project, and WildEarth Guardians, we used our legal skills to force BLM to suspend its oil & gas leasing program pending an evaluation of climate change, recommending to BLM that readily-available greenhouse gas reduction technologies should be a required condition of owning an oil & gas lease.<\/p>\n Update:<\/p>\n December 2010: BLM completed the environmental reviews, using them February 2011: We filed a second legal challenge in federal court against the Our court hearing occured on\u00a0May 24, 2013. WELC attorney Shiloh August 2013: Our lawsuit to block almost 80,000 acres of oil and gas leases on public lands in Montana, in an effort to force the federal government to require that drilling companies reduce greenhouse gas emissions, was dismissed. U.S. District Judge Sam Haddon ruled that the emissions from future drilling activities would be too small \u2014 only a fraction of 1 percent of total emissions in the state \u2014 to make a “meaningful contribution” to global greenhouse gas levels. We remain committed to reducing methane emissions from oil and gas drilling on public lands, and we appealed this to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.<\/p>\n June 2015: We had oral argument in Seattle before the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and are awaiting the decision. You can view the oral argument here: http:\/\/www.ca9.uscourts.gov\/media\/<\/a><\/p>\n September 2015: The Ninth Circuit issued a ruling on our climate standing appeal. The court vacated the district court\u2019s decision granting summary judgment to defendants based on a previous ruling that our clients lack standing.<\/p>\n In the decision, the court makes a clear statement that local impacts are sufficient to establish standing to raise National Environmental Policy Act climate arguments. The Court wrote: \u201cAlthough Appellants\u2019 claims of procedural error relate to the government\u2019s alleged failure to consider climate-change effects, Appellants\u2019 injuries which resulted from that error need not. For standing, it matters only whether the challenged governmental action would cause the plaintiff a concrete and redressable injury.\u201d<\/p>\n This is an important decision in light of prior Ninth Circuit case law limiting the ability to litigate against actions that contribute to climate change. While the decision is a memorandum opinion without binding effect in the Ninth Circuit, it has persuasive value.<\/p>\n Now we proceed back to district court where we will try to use NEPA to force BLM to address the serious problem of vented, flared, and leaked methane emissions from oil and gas operations in Montana. This ties in with our other work on upcoming BLM rules to reduce methane waste on public lands, and if we prevail, we hope this case will complement that work by setting a national precedent.<\/p>\n (WELC project #673)<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Montana Oil & Gas Drilling Lease Climate Challenge In Montana, leaky oil & gas drilling operations on public lands emit 1.8 billion cubic feet of methane (and perhaps far more) to the atmosphere each year. Over a 20-year lifetime of development, keeping this methane out of the atmosphere would be the equivalent of an additional […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":5836,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":" 2015.08.31-Oil_and_Gas_Lease_Standing_Memo.pdf<\/a><\/p> MT Oil & Gas Appeal Notice Filed 8.1.13.pdf<\/a><\/p> MT Oil & Gas Lease Dismissal 6.14.2013.pdf<\/a><\/p> MT Oil & Gas Lease Settlement Agreement with BLM 3.11.2010.pdf<\/a><\/p> MT Oil & Gas Lease Round 2 Complaint Filed 2.7.2011.pdf<\/a><\/p>Project Updates<\/h2>\n
\nprotect biological diversity. But ecologists agreed after the designation that many of the most important parts of the region were excluded from the monument’s boundaries. In 2015, 85 scientists concerned about increasing
\nthreats to the area signed a letter urging monument expansion in to better
\nprotect and connect important habitats for the monument\u2019s spectacular variety
\nof plants and animals \u201cwhose survival in the region,\u201d according the monument\u2019s
\noriginal proclamation, \u201cdepends upon its continued ecological integrity.\u201d In January 2017, President Obama expanded the monument to include these ecologically important areas.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\n<\/span><\/p>\n
\nnot only to justify the decision to lift the suspension but, further, to
\nexecute an additional 53 oil and gas leases in Montana totaling 33,257
\nacres. Unfortunately, these reviews are deeply inadequate. So, once
\nagain, we filed suit using our legal skills to force BLM to accurately
\nevaluate the combined impacts of oil & gas development and climate
\nchange to wildlands, habitats and communities.<\/p>\n
\nBureau of Land Management\u2019s decision to lift a suspension on 25,329
\nacres of oil and gas leases in Montana and are awaiting a court
\ndate.\u00a0Fortunately, there has been no drilling activity yet on the 120
\nleases in dispute.<\/p>\n
\nHernandez argued that the federal government should have forced
\ncompanies to reduce emissions from oil and gas fields as a condition of
\nleasing.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n