Trade Groups Intervene in Suit Over Exploratory Drilling Permits

MOBILE, Ala. - A federal court has allowed the American Petroleum Institute and other trade organizations to intervene as defendants in a lawsuit challenging the U.S. Department of the Interior's method of granting exploratory well drillers in the Gulf of Mexico exclusions from certain environmental reviews. Defenders of Wildlife v. Minerals Management Service, et al., No. 10-0254-WS-C (S.D. Ala.).

Chief Judge William H. Steele of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Alabama filed the order on Aug. 9, granting API's motion to intervene in the lawsuit filed by Defenders of Wildlife against the Dept. of Interior's Minerals …