Supreme Court Bolsters Clean Air Act

Recently, the Supreme Court boosted the EPA’s ability to curb GHG emissions by upholding the agency’s authority to regulate pollution that crosses state lines. The 6-2 ruling has cleared the way for the EPA to further enhance regulations to cut CO² emissions under the Clean Air Act; the new rules are expected to be unveiled this summer. The decision also supports the Obama administration’s environmental policy as outlined by his Climate Action Plan. Importantly, the decision sets the stage for the EPA to allow energy efficiency as part of state’s GHG reduction strategies per Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act.

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Justices Back Rule Limiting Coal Pollution

In a major victory for the Obama administration, the Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld the authority of theEnvironmental Protection Agency to regulate the smog from coal plants that drifts across state lines from 28 Midwestern and Appalachian states to the East Coast.

The 6-to-2 ruling bolsters the centerpiece of President Obama’s environmental agenda: a series of new regulations aimed at cutting pollution from coal-fired power plants. Republicans and the coal industry have criticized the regulations, which use the Clean Air Act as their legal authority, as a “war on coal.” The industry has waged an aggressive legal battle to undo the rules.

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