Case Summary Citation
Wyoming v. United States Department of Interior, No. 2:14-CV-043-SWS, ___ F. Supp. 3d ___, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 135044, 2015 WL 5845145 (D. Wyo. Sept. 30, 2015)
Abstract
In a scathing opinion, the United States District Court for the District of Wyoming granted a motion for preliminary injunction, effectively blocking the BLM’s new Fracking Rule from being implemented on federal and tribal lands in the United States. The court held not only was the BLM’s new rule likely arbitrary and capricious, but the department lacked the authority to regulate fracking. The opinion relied on the Safe Drinking Water Act and the Energy Policy Act to determine that Congress explicitly removed fracking from federal regulation. Pending an appeal, the new Fracking Rule will not be implemented.