Conservation groups’ efforts to block federal approval for a Tennessee natural gas pipeline appeared to fall flat before an appeals court Tuesday.
During oral arguments before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, Judge Gregory Katsas said the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission had done a “very straightforward analysis” of the 32-mile gas pipeline.
The pipeline would enable the Tennessee Valley Authority to build the new Cumberland gas plant to replace two coal units. The Sierra Club and other groups argued that FERC should have also considered the new gas plant to be a connected project to the pipeline, and considered the environmental impacts of both.
But Katsas, a Trump pick, said TVA needs the pipeline in order for its planned gas plant to operate. He compared the case to another recent decision where the D.C. Circuit ruled in FERC’s favor.
