A district court held that the USDA's Rural Utilities Service violated NEPA by failing to prepare an EIS in connection with its involvement in the expansion of a coal-fired generating plant in Holcomb, Kansas. Because the Service provided approvals and financial support to the project, the agenc...
A district court partially dismissed EPA's lawsuit against an energy company for violating the CAA when it allegedly undertook major modifications at a coal-fired power plant in Festus, Missouri. EPA alleged that the company violated the Missouri SIP, the terms of its Title V permit, and the CAA...
The Federal Circuit, in a case involving an electronics manufacturer's challenge to excise taxes on the use of ozone depleting chemicals (ODCs), reversed a lower court decision ordering the IRS to disclose to the manufacturer its excise tax audits of other companies. After paying the excise tax ...
The Ninth Circuit held that EPA's approval of the 2004 SIP for the San Joaquin Valley nonattainment area for the one-hour ozone NAAQS was arbitrary and capricious. Although it approved the SIP in 2010, EPA's approval was based on data current only as of 2004. By approving the 2004 SIP despite kn...
The Fourth Circuit affirmed a lower court decision dismissing an environmental group's lawsuit challenging the OSM's approval of two amendments to West Virginia's surface coal mining regulations. One amendment repeals the definition of "cumulative impact" in the state's cumulative hydrologic imp...
A district court dismissed an automobile engine manufacturer's lawsuit against EPA seeking to force the Agency to recall model year 2010 heavy-duty diesel engines equipped with liquid, urea-based selective catalyst reduction (SCR) technology for failing to comply with CAA emissions standards. Th...
The Ninth Circuit denied a chemical company's petitions for review challenging EPA's partial disapproval of a proposed revision to Montana's SIP governing sulfur dioxide (SO2) emissions, its 1993 "SIP Call" that started the review process, and the Agency's 2008 federal implementation plan (FIP) reme...
The Ninth Circuit affirmed in part and reversed in part the Surface Transportation Board's approval of a railroad company's applications to build a 130-mile railroad line in Southeastern Montana to haul coal. The Board prepared EISs under NEPA and included numerous mitigation measures in its approva...
A district court vacated EPA's stay of two rules setting forth emission standards from boilers and commercial and industrial solid waste incineration units. EPA issued the rules on March 21, 2011, and shortly thereafter several parties filed petitions for review challenging the legal sufficiency of ...