A district court dismissed a RCRA citizen suit over a closure plan for a coal-fired power plant in Alabama. An environmental group challenged the plan, arguing it was unlawful to permanently store over 21 million tons of coal ash and toxic pollutants in the existing unlined impoundment, situated in ...
The Fifth Circuit, 2-1, denied petitions to review EPA's 2016 designation of two counties in Texas as nonattainment for the 2010 sulfur dioxide NAAQS. The state of Texas and the owner of a power plant located in one of the counties sought to have the designation vacated, arguing it violated the CAA ...
The Fourth Circuit, 2-1, granted West Virginia's motion to stay EPA's disapproval of its SIP addressing "good neighbor" obligations under the revised 2015 air quality standards for ozone. EPA's disapproval found the state would still contribute significantly to nonattainment or interfere with mainte...
The Ninth Circuit granted in part and denied in part environmental and public interest groups' petition to review EPA's amended pesticide registrations of streptomycin sulfate for use in combating citrus diseases. The groups argued EPA's determination that the registration would not cause "unreasona...
The Fifth Circuit, 2-1, granted six small refineries' petitions to review an EPA decision denying their requested exemptions from obligations under the CAA Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) program. The refineries challenged two actions—EPA's denial of 36 petitions from 36 small refineries seeking exe...
The Fifth Circuit vacated the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality's (TCEQ's) order granting a PSD permit for a new liquefied natural gas (LNG) facility in Texas. An environmental group petitioned for review, arguing TCEQ erred by not imposing the same emissions limits for carbon monoxide and n...
The Ninth Circuit, 2-1, affirmed a district court's grant of summary judgment for agricultural producers and businesses and a permanent injunction enjoining the California attorney general (AG) from enforcing Proposition 65's carcinogen warning requirement for the herbicide glyphosate. Plaintiffs ar...
The Eighth Circuit granted farming groups' petitions to review EPA's 2021 order banning agricultural use of the insecticide chlorpyrifos. The groups argued EPA's "rushed" decision to revoke all tolerances for chlorpyrifos, in response to a Ninth Circuit order directing the Agency to either revoke al...
The Fifth Circuit affirmed summary judgment for the operator of a chemical storage facility in a lawsuit concerning the operator's 2019 oil spill into the Houston Ship Channel. Shipping companies that were forced to stop operations after the spill sued the operator, seeking economic loss damages und...
The D.C. Circuit denied the state of Utah's motion to stay EPA's 2023 "good neighbor" rule, which aims to ensure that 23 states meet the CAA's good neighbor requirements by reducing ozone-forming emissions of nitrogen oxides from power plants and industrial facilities that contribute to compliance i...