FERC loses a member, throwing a wrench into pipeline approvals

President Donald Trump has a penchant for, among other things, speed and pipelines. He’s already signed papers to move along the approvals of the contested Keystone XL and Dakota Access oil pipelines. But the process has hit a snag at an obscure federal agency that approves pipeline projects — the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. A FERC member is quitting, and the agency won’t have a quorum. 

And before long, FERC may not be so quiet — it will very likely find itself at the center of fossil fuel pipeline fights in this administration and beyond.