Gabby Brown, gabby.brown@sierraclub.org
Washington, DC – This afternoon, Senate Republicans led by West Virginia Senator Shelley Moore Capito released legislation that would overhaul federal permitting requirements under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) and other federal environmental protection laws including the Clean Water Act and Endangered Species Act.
The Republican bill comes amid controversy over a similar effort by Senator Joe Manchin, negotiated with Senate leadership in exchange for his support of the Inflation Reduction Act, to weaken NEPA protections, limit opportunities for public input on proposed infrastructure projects, and greenlight the fracked gas Mountain Valley Pipeline. Capito’s bill also requires federal agencies to issue permits for the Mountain Valley Pipeline within 21 days, and prevents any federal court from reviewing them. Courts have already overturned the permits at issue multiple times.
Last week, hundreds of frontline activists from Appalachia and across the country came together in Washington, DC to call on Congress to reject any attempts to weaken critical environmental safeguards.
In response, Sierra Club Deputy Legislative Director Mahyar Sorour released the following statement:
“This so-called ‘permitting reform’ bill is nothing more than a shameless attempt to make it easier for fossil fuel companies to steamroll communities and fast-track their polluting projects. Efforts to weaken NEPA and limit the public’s ability to weigh in on pipelines and other infrastructure that would affect them would be devastating for our communities, especially in places like Appalachia and the Gulf South that have already been treated as fossil fuel sacrifice zones for far too long. The Sierra Club will continue to fight back against any proposed legislation that would rubber-stamp the disastrous Mountain Valley Pipeline and other fossil fuel infrastructure.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.