On May 16, in Texas v. EPA, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals rejected EPA’s nonattainment designation for two counties in Texas. What I find most interesting about the case is the reaction to it. Inside EPA (subscription...more
5/27/2025
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Air Pollution ,
Appeals ,
Chevron Deference ,
Clean Air Act ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Judicial Review ,
Loper Bright Enterprises v Raimondo ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Texas
As we have noted previously, a number of states have enacted legislation and/or brought claims against fossil fuel producers seeking payment for damages resulting from climate change. Legislative efforts include New York...more
5/12/2025
/ Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Executive Orders ,
Fossil Fuel ,
Global Warming ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Preemption ,
State and Local Government ,
Trump Administration
On Monday morning, the Supreme Court denied certiorari in Juliana v. United States. The cert. denial leaves in place the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision that ordered the case dismissed for lack of standing. At least for...more
We previously reported on New York State’s enactment of the Climate Change Superfund Act (the “Climate Superfund Act” or the “Act”), groundbreaking legislation that seeks to recover $75 billion from fossil fuel producers for...more
3/12/2025
/ Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Justice ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Infrastructure ,
Legislative Agendas ,
New York ,
Oil & Gas ,
Superfund
Last week, we posted about New York State’s enactment of the Climate Change Superfund Act. We promised to continue to monitor developments concerning climate superfund legislation and to update readers as necessary. It’s been...more
1/14/2025
/ California ,
Carbon Emissions ,
CERCLA ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Policy ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Public Health ,
State and Local Government
Earlier this week, the Montana Supreme Court affirmed a lower court ruling in favor of plaintiffs in a climate case based on certain provisions of the Montana constitution. Specifically, the court ruled that:
- The...more
12/20/2024
/ Citizen Suits ,
Climate Action Plan ,
Climate Change ,
Environmental Impact Statements ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Injunctions ,
Montana ,
MT Supreme Court ,
Permits ,
State Constitutions
Earlier this week, in what almost certainly has to be the most fractured appellate decision in the history of the United States courts, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, sitting en banc, affirmed via per curiam decision the...more
Last November, I posted about litigation filed by New York State Attorney General Letitia James, asserting public nuisance and other claims against PepsiCo concerning contamination of the Buffalo River. At the time, I...more
On October 16, 2024, the United States Supreme Court shot down requests from states and industry groups to stay the implementation of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) rule to reduce carbon emissions from coal-fired...more
10/17/2024
/ Carbon Capture and Sequestration ,
Clean Air Act ,
Climate Change ,
Energy Sector ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Greenhouse Gas Emissions ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Utilities Sector
Sometimes, a blog just has to be written. For those of us of a certain age, Sterling Hayden's speech as Jack D. Ripper in Dr. Strangelove concerning the Communist plot to fluoridate our water is iconic. Well, it turns out...more
10/2/2024
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Chemicals ,
Chevron Deference ,
Citizen Suits ,
Drinking Water ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Judicial Review ,
Statutory Authority ,
Statutory Interpretation ,
Toxic Chemicals ,
Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA)
Inside EPA (subscription required) reported this week that a group of Democratic state attorneys general have filed an amicus brief supporting EPA’s appeal of a 9th Circuit Court of Appeals decision holding that EPA had...more
On Wednesday, the 9th Circuit granted a petition for mandamus from the United States and ordered the District Court to dismiss the complaint in Juliana v. United States. The 9th Circuit had previously ordered the case...more
On Tuesday, in Ohio v. EPA, the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals denied several challenges to EPA’s decision to restore California’s authority under § 209(b) of the Clean Air Act to regulate emissions from motor vehicles. It’s...more
4/10/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Air Quality Standards ,
Carbon Emissions ,
Clean Air Act ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Motor Vehicles ,
NGOs ,
Preemption ,
Regulatory Requirements
This week, Inside EPA (subscription required) ran a story indicating that EPA is trying to figure out how to juggle some increasingly expensive cleanups with shortfalls in Superfund tax revenue. The story notes that EPA is...more
Earlier this month, the District of Columbia Court of Appeals vacated most of EPA’s startup, shutdown, and malfunction SIP Call. The Court’s rationale boils down to EPA’s failure to make a predicate finding that the SIP call...more
3/11/2024
/ Air Pollution ,
Air Quality Standards ,
Appeals ,
Citizen Suits ,
Electricity ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Florida ,
NAAQS ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Vacated
On February 7, 2024, EPA finalized a rule lowering the primary annual National Ambient Air Quality Standard for PM2.5 to 9.00 ug/m3. This is a significant reduction from the current 12.00 ug/m3 standard and a victory for...more
Late last month, the Interagency Working Group on Social Cost of Greenhouse Gases quietly released a three-paragraph memo on how agencies should determine the social cost of greenhouse gas emissions. I hesitate to call it...more
Earlier this month, in Lewis v. United States the 5th Circuit issued a decision interpreting the Supreme Court’s decision in Sackett v. EPA. The 5th Circuit decision is a model of clarity and demonstrates what I’ll call the...more
Last month, I advised plastics manufacturers to prepare for more litigation. Although I am generally loath to speculate, it already looks as though this prediction is coming true. Earlier this month, PennEnvironment and...more
Earlier this week, New York State Attorney General Letitia James filed suit against PepsiCo. At the core of the case are allegations that PepsiCo.’s widespread use of single-use plastics has created or contributed to a...more
Late last month, in Munoz v. Intercontinental Terminals Company, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals held that the liability provisions of CERCLA and the Oil Pollution Act do not overlap and that, consequently, where oil and...more
Earlier this week, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed EPA’s NPDES permit issued to San Francisco’s Oceanside sewer system. San Francisco had challenged the permit on the ground that EPA does not have authority to...more
8/3/2023
/ Appeals ,
Clean Water Act ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
Municipalities ,
NPDES ,
Permits ,
State Water Boards ,
Storm Water ,
USEPA ,
Water ,
Waters of the United States
Earlier this week, the Supreme Court accepted cert. in Lopez Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, which presents a straightforward challenge to the continuing viability of Chevron...more
Last week, D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected challenges to EPA’s “Revised Cross-State Air Pollution Update Rule”. The Court found that the Rule was “an appropriate exercise of EPA’s statutory authority”....more
3/13/2023
/ Air Pollution ,
Amended Rules ,
Appeals ,
Citizen Suits ,
Department of Environmental Quality ,
Environmental Litigation ,
Environmental Policies ,
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ,
NAAQS ,
Ozone ,
Pollution Control ,
Statutory Authority
Earlier this month, United States District Court Judge Stephen Wilson held that NL Industries was not liable under CERCLA for air emissions of lead because such emissions did not constitute “disposal” within the meaning of...more