Las week EPA issued a new proposal to limit carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from new coal-fueled and natural gas-fueled electric generating units. The proposal replaces a proposal EPA had made last year. For new coal-fueled units, including both coal boilers and integrated gasification combined cycle units, EPA proposed a standard of:
In response to EPA enforcement actions pursued under provisions of the Clean Air Act, Shell Gulf of Mexico Inc. and Shell Offshore Inc. agreed to pay civil penalties associated with alleged violations of air permits at two of its drilling operations on the Arctic Shelf.
At the end of last week, EPA Region 6 released a proposal that would require Oklahoma to revise its state air quality regulations regarding startup, shutdown, and malfunction events, referred to as “SSM.” The proposal is noteworthy because it comes just a few weeks before EPA has promised to finalize a similar proposal that applies to 36 states, including Oklahoma.
Randy Brogdon, a Partner in the Environmental and Natural Resources Practice, spoke at the 8th Annual Georgia Environmental Conference (GEC) held in Jeckyll Island, Georgia earlier this month. The GEC is a three-day event with over 50 unique courses designed to help environmental professionals exchange knowledge and share ideas around environmental concerns in Georgia.
Troutman Sanders is pleased to announce that Brooks Smith, a top-ranked environmental and administrative lawyer, has joined the firm’s Environmental and Natural Resources practice in the Richmond office. He previously served as co-chair of the environmental practice at Hunton & Williams. Smith will help the firm execute various strategic initiatives focused on environmental markets, sustainability, coal, energy, water, and compliance assurance. Law 360 reported this news on Wednesday, August 28. Read more here.
Yesterday the Third Circuit released its decision in Bell v. Cheswick. In this case, a putative class of 1,500 property owners sued GenOn, claiming that fly ash and unburned coal combustion by-products from its 570-megawatt Springdale plant settled on and devalued their properties. The federal district court for the Western District of Pennsylvania held that such state common law nuisance, trespass, and negligence claims were preempted by the Clean Air Act (CAA), which extensively regulated air emissions from the plant.
Mack McGuffey has published an article to provide some NSR compliance tips for utility units.
Last week, the D.C. Circuit upheld EPA’s 2008 ozone standard of 75 ppb, although it remanded the agency’s decision to set a secondary standard at exactly the same level. It may seem strange for the court to take five years to issue its decision on these ozone standards, but the court was marking time while EPA proposed to lower the standard to between 60 and 70 ppb, only to have that proposal rejected by the White House in light of plans to re-evaluate the standard whole cloth in 2013.
On Friday, July 19th, the Tenth Circuit issued a much-anticipated decision in the lawsuit over regional haze requirements in Oklahoma. In a split decision, with three judges writing three separate opinions, the majority of the Tenth Circuit panel deferred to EPA’s position instead of respecting the state authority granted to Oklahoma under the Clean Air Act.
Last Tuesday, the Tenth Circuit added its name to the growing list of federal appellate courts that agree EPA need not withhold approval of Title V operating permit renewals simply because a citizen group, or even EPA itself, has alleged violations of the New Source Review (NSR) program. Three other courts that have addressed this issue (the Sixth, Seventh, and Eleventh Circuits) have likewise held that EPA could approve Title V permits despite unresolved NSR claims, leaving the Second Circuit as the only court to hold otherwise.