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Sierra Club Lawsuits

Court Rules for Clean Air, Reverses Bush Administration Rollbacks

Case Updates:

August 26, 2008

Children everywhere will breathe easier, and large pollution sources will be held accountable, thanks to a recent, landmark victory for clean air.  On August 19, 2008, the Sierra Club and other environmental organizations won a major court decision on the requirements for pollution monitoring under Title V of the Clean Air Act. The decision issued by the DC Circuit Court reversed a Bush administration regulation that tried to strip away the power of states and localities to require rigorous pollution monitoring from coal plants, refineries and similar industrial polluters.  The court found that Title V of the Clean Air Act authorizes state and local agencies to supplement EPA permits with more rigorous monitoring requirements than are required by the federal EPA.  (Some federal EPA permits require only one pollution test over the entire 50-year life of a facility!).  The court victory will ensure that polluters comply with the law and that polluters clean up their act and prove it. 

Details and Documents:

To read the Courts opinion click here.

To read the Sierra Club's Press release click here.

News Articles

Court Rejects E.P.A Limits on Emissions Rules
August 19, 2008 by Felicity Barringer, New York Times

Bush Administration Rule on Pollution Struck Down
August 20, 2008 by Del Quentin Wilber, Washington Post

Appeals Court Says Bush Administration Pollution Rule Illegal
August 19, 2008 by Jason Leopold, The Public Record