FERC issues final EIS for Spire STL Pipeline

(Map: Marcellus Drilling News.)

The U.S. Federal Regulatory Energy Commission (FERC) issued a positive environmental impact statement (EIS) for Spire STL, which is the final step before issuing a permanent certificate for the pipeline to operate.

Spire STL Pipeline is a 65-mile pipeline that connects to and flows Marcellus/Utica gas from the Rockies Express (REX) pipeline in Scott County, IL, to residents and businesses in the St. Louis, MO, area.

This is the latest chapter in an extended legal battle for the pipeline. Spire has been up and running since 2019 after receiving its first FERC certificate in 2018.

The Environmental Defense Fund challenged the first permit in January 2020, arguing the FERC granted an operating permit without the required justification that it was needed. In June 2021, three judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit overturned the first certificate. In December 2021, with the first certificate gone and a shutdown imminent, FERC granted an emergency certificate for Spire STL to continue operating. The pipeline still operates under the emergency certificate while pursuing a permanent certificate.