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Sierra Club Lawsuits

Administration’s “Switcheroo” Thrown Out in Air Pollution Case

Case Updates:

October 7, 2005

Over the past years, the Bush administration has used a variety of measures to weaken and limit our nation’s environmental protections, including a tactic we like to term “sue-and-settle.” “Sue-and-settle” usually involves a Big Industry lawsuit challenging an environmental protection, where, rather than defending the protection in court, the administration offers to “settle” the case and grant the Industry’s wish. Take for example this recent case: after years of debate, rulemaking, and court decisions upholding stringent monitoring requirements for major sources of air pollution, the Utility Air Regulator Group (UARG) joined with other trade groups to file suit against the EPA, arguing yet again that the monitoring requirements should be thrown out. This time, rather than defend its good pollution rules as it had done in the past, the administration chose to settle with UARG and issued a retraction of the monitoring requirements. Sound fishy? After hearing this story, Sierra Club joined with other groups including the Environmental Integrity Project to challenge this sudden, undemocratic reversal. In an October ruling, the DC Circuit Court of Appeals agreed with our argument and overturned the industry settlement. According to the opinion, the court “refused to allow agencies to use the rulemaking process to pull a surprise switcheroo on regulated entities.” Now the EPA has to reconsider the air pollution requirements and issue a proposal that is open for public comment and debate instead of taking cues from its Big Industry buddies.

April 1, 2004

What’s the best way to prevent air pollution? Self-monitoring. What, you don’t agree? Well, luckily neither did we. Now, in light of a new set of Bush administration rules that would allow polluters to monitor themselves as little as twice every five years, Sierra Club has filed suit to stop this corporate polluter giveaway. The new rules ignore sound science which prove that self-monitoring is ineffective and inadequate. Moreover, the Bush administration’s rulemaking process failed to include the mandatory public notice and comment period, making the rules the latest in a series of Bush administration backroom sweetheart deals.

Details and Documents:

Court Decision
October 7, 2005 U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit