April 30th, 2020: On April 30, Sierra Club’s Environmental Law Program filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for permitting the ongoing construction of the 428-mile Permian Highway fracked gas pipeline, despite a federal court order vacating the nationwide permit on which the pipeline’s 449 water crossings are based, and for not performing the environmental review required under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA).
If completed, the Permian Highway Pipeline would carry 2 billion cubic feet of fracked gas across Texas from the Permian Basin, through Texas Hill Country, to an end point in Colorado County. The pipeline’s route also crosses some of the most environmentally sensitive areas in central and west Texas, including the recharge zones of the Edwards and Edwards-Trinity Aquifers (which provide drinking water for over two million Texans) and habitat for many imperiled species listed as “threatened” or “endangered” under the Endangered Species Act, such as the golden-cheeked warbler, Tobursch fishhook cactus, and Houston toad.
The Corps of Engineers issued an approval for the pipeline using a fast-tracked process called Nationwide Permit 12 (NWP12). In April, however, Sierra Club and allies successfully challenged the nationwide permit, and federal court vacated the permit, leaving the pipeline without valid verifications for dredge and fill activities. The Sierra Club’s lawsuit argues that the Army Corps is violating the law by allowing the construction in rivers and streams to continue. In addition to the vacatur of NWP12, the suit argues that the Corps also failed to comply with NEPA when it approved the project.
Sierra Club is represented by ELP attorneys Rebecca McCreary and Joshua Smith, and supported by managing attorney Eric Huber, research analyst Lauren Hogrewe, and legal assistant Cassidy Lang. Read more about the legal action and Sierra Club’s advocacy in the official press release here.