Under the newly adopted policies, the Corps of Engineers must weigh the energy produced per acre for any projects under its oversight against the potential impact of alternative uses of the land. The Department of the Interior was ordered to make a similar consideration.
For the purposes of a temporary injunction, that turned out to be enough. Given this justification, Casper said she could not conclude that the suing organizations were likely to win on their claims that the policy was arbitrary and capricious. That determination would have to await a full trial.
But it won’t, because those rules turned out to be illegal for other reasons.
Casper’s ruling notes that the laws governing the use of public lands require agencies to weigh multiple factors, balancing the benefits of different uses versus preservation. The rules instituted at Interior and the Corps of Engineers made a simple energy-density calculation the sole determinant of whether a project could proceed, sidestepping the process set forth in the relevant laws. As such, those policies also merit an injunction.
At least for the parties involved in the suit, none of the hurdles the Trump administration placed on renewable energy will apply. And the groups involved in the suit included many renewable energy developers*. That said, involved agencies could still create informal obstacles without violating the injunction, such as quietly slowing the pace of project approvals. The government can also potentially appeal this injunction.
So while the ruling is good news, it’s not a guarantee that the growth of renewables will continue unhindered over the next several years.
* The full list of plaintiffs: Clean Grid Alliance, Alliance For Clean Energy New York, Renew Northeast, Mid-Atlantic Renewable Energy Coalition Action, Renewable Northwest, Carolinas Clean Energy Business Association, Southern Renewable Energy Association, Interwest Energy Alliance.