Industry Organization Challenges EPA Cross State Air Pollution Rule

• Published date: 11 July 2021
• Subject Matter: Environment, Environmental Law, Clean Air / Pollution
• Law Firm: Jenner & Block
• Author: Ms Allison A. Torrence

As the saying goes, "no good neighbor rule goes unpunished." Thus, the latest attempt by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") to promulgate a Revised Cross-State Air Pollution Rule ("CSAPR") Update under the "good neighbor provision" of the Clean Air Act and in response to the D.C. Circuit's remand of the previous version of the CSAPR Update has been challenged in court. On June 25, 2021, Midwest Ozone Group'an affiliation of companies, trade organizations, and associations created to advance its members interests regarding national ambient air quality programs'filed a petition for review of the final rule of EPA published in the Federal Register at 86 Fed. Reg. 23,054 (April 30, 2021) entitled the "Revised Cross-State Air Pollution Rule Update for the 2008 Ozone NAAQS." The petition does not provide any details at this point regarding the basis for the group's challenge to the Revised CSAPR Update.

As we previously reported on this Blog, the Revised CSAPR Update became effective 60 days after it was published (effective on June 29, 2021), and has requirements that begin right away in the 2021 ozone season (the ozone season is May 1 through September 30). The rule requires additional emissions reductions of nitrogen oxides ("NO_X") from power plants in 12 states: Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and West Virginia. EPA determined that additional emissions reductions were necessary in these 12 states because projected 2021 ozone season NO_X emissions from these states were found to significantly contribute to downwind states' nonattainment and/or maintenance problems for the 2008 ozone National Ambient Air Quality Standards ("NAAQS"). NO_X is an ozone precursor...