While natural gas conversions continue, an industry association of heating oil dealers hasn’t given up its legal fight against the plan, which is causing its members to lose customers and revenue.
While natural gas conversions continue, an industry association of heating oil dealers hasn't given up its legal fight against the plan, which is causing its members to lose customers and revenue.
The Connecticut Energy Marketers Association (CEMA) sued the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) in 2014, arguing that the Comprehensive Energy Strategy (CES) and its gas-conversion plan violated the state's Environmental Policy Act because DEEP failed to conduct a detailed evaluation of the plan's environmental impacts.
DEEP's attorneys won dismissal of the case in July 2015 when a judge ruled that the agency was following legislative directives, that the CES did not require an environmental review, and that the plan would not significantly affect the environment, according to court records.
CEMA quickly appealed, and the state Supreme Court agreed in January to review the ruling. The case is on the court's schedule of first-term cases, slated for proceedings this fall.
