Supreme Court Seems Ready to Back Atlantic Coast Pipeline Permit

A majority of U.S. Supreme Court justices seemed supportive of a crucial permit for Dominion Energy Inc.’s planned $8 billion Atlantic Coast Pipeline, suggesting the Forest Service acted lawfully by clearing the natural-gas line to cross under the Appalachian Trail.

In an hour-long argument in Washington Monday, Chief Justice John Roberts said the position taken by environmental groups opposed to the pipeline would “erect an impermeable barrier” along the 2,200-mile (3540-kilometer) trail, separating consumers on the eastern seaboard from inland energy resources.