The decision limits the scope of a federal law that mandates extensive environmental impact reviews of energy, infrastructure, and transportation projects.
Editor’s note: The original piece incorrectly stated the project in question was a pipeline, not a rail line. We have amended the article to reflect this correction on June 10, 2025.
A Supreme Court decision in favor of a proposed Utah rail line designed to move crude oil will likely have sweeping implications for other energy, transportation, and infrastructure projects. According to reporting by Nina Totenberg for NPR, “The decision makes it easier to win approval for highways, bridges, pipelines, wind farms and other infrastructure projects.”
The ruling concerns a proposed railway in Utah’s Uinta Basin, which was approved by the Surface Transportation Board (STB). “The U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington subsequently ruled that the Board had violated NEPA, by failing to consider the environmental effects from oil drilling and production, referred to as upstream, and oil refining and distribution, known as downstream.”
The Supreme Court’s reversal of that decision signals a rollback of NEPA’s powers. The act has been frequently used by environmental and community activists to block harmful projects and ensure that officials evaluate all the potential impacts of a project.
FULL STORY: Supreme Court limits environmental reviews of infrastructure projects
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