Administrative Law: Scope of Judicial Review

摘要

The facts are provided in the ease summary at 166 O.&G.R.___. After the 2006 decision remanded the case back to the Department of Environmental Protection based on the finding that original permit denial decision was arbitrary and capricious, DEP conducted a further review and again denied certification. This time, however, in another 2-1 decision the court affirms the DEP decision. In what can be described as a "hard look" at the record before the DEP, the court reviews the proposed pipeline route, the proposed construction techniques which include horizontal directional drilling, dredging and backfilling and plowing. In the earlier decision, the court reviewed the impact that the Energy Policy Act of 2005 has on federal court jurisdiction to review state agency decisions affecting energy projects.