U.S. judge refuses to narrow ruling to Keystone XL pipeline

"A federal judge in Montana on Monday upheld his ruling last month that canceled an environmental permit for the long-delayed Keystone XL oil pipeline and threatened other oil and natural-gas pipeline projects with delays," Timothy Gardner reports for Reuters.

District Judge Brian Morris ruled in April that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers didn't adequately comply with the Endangered Species Act in 2017 when it renewed a general permit that allows dredging work on pipelines through bodies of water. Morris also said letting construction proceed could do serious harm to protected species and habitats.

The corps asked Morris to limit his April 15 ruling to the Keystone XL permit, but Morris refused. "The ruling does not block construction of Keystone or other pipelines, but without the permit to do dredging work many oil and gas projects could be delayed," Gardner reports.

At the heart of the issue is the corps' streamlined permitting process, which Morris said doesn't allow enough input from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on risks to endangered species and habitats, Ellen Gilmer reports for Bloomberg Law.

"In Monday’s order, he agreed to narrow his April ruling to allow the Army Corps to use the fast-track permitting process for non-pipeline construction work and routine activities on existing projects," Gilmer reports. "But Morris declined to scale back his order to focus only on Keystone XL, and he refused to freeze his decision while the Trump administration and pipeline backer TC Energy pursue an appeal."