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2020 election could decide the fate of the controversial Keystone and Dakota Access pipelines

07 July 2020
Dan Ackermann

Two new court actions — one by the Supreme Court and another by a federal judge — together highlight and raise the energy stakes of November's election.

Why it matters: The legal actions mean the results of the 2020 election could very well decide the fate of Keystone XL and Dakota Access, two projects at the heart of battles over fossil fuel infrastructure.

Driving the news: Late Monday, the high court thwarted a Trump administration push to revive construction of the Keystone XL oil pipeline.

  • But the order simultaneously cleared the way for a suite of other pipelines to proceed under a contested permit program called Nationwide Permit 12.
  • Separately, a judge ordered the shut down of the existing Dakota Access Pipeline until the Army Corps of Engineers completes a new environmental review.

Where it stands: Joe Biden opposes Keystone XL. And if the decision to halt operations of Dakota Access withstands challenge, the Corps' review is estimated to continue far beyond the election. A Biden White House may not allow the pipeline to resume operations, analysts say.

  • "A potential Biden administration would likely refuse to conduct a new environmental review, resulting in a permanent shutdown of the 570 kb/d pipeline," Rapidan Energy Group said in a note.
  • And via ClearView Energy Partners: "We think there is a strong possibility that the new Biden administration could decide to not reissue the authorizations now that the permits have been vacated."

The big picture: More broadly, November is approaching fast, so the outcome will certainly affect the regulatory environment for fossil fuel projects more broadly.

  • Biden has vowed to closely scrutinize fossil fuel projects for climate effects and take steps to speed up the transition to low-carbon fuels.

Catch up fast: While Monday's high court order should allow some contested projects to proceed, overall the Trump administration is having a tough time realizing its goal of successfully knocking down regulatory barriers.

  • Yesterday's action came just a day after two huge energy companies, Dominion Energy and Duke Energy, scuttled plans for the Atlantic Coast Pipeline, a major natural gas line from West Virginia to North Carolina, amid legal and permitting challenges.

What they're saying: One analyst tells Bloomberg that the one-two punch of that project's demise and the Dakota Access decision highlights a shift in the business landscape.

  • "I would expect this to be a turning point for new investment," Katie Bays of Sandhill Strategy says in Bloomberg's piece. “There is real investor fatigue around this parade of legal and regulatory headwinds to energy projects."

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.