EPA Faces Dual Legal Bids Seeking To Force Issuance Of CAFO Air Rules

摘要

EPA faces dual legal bids seeking to force it to issue first-time Clean Air Act rules for concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs), with one suit claiming the air law includes a duty for the agency to craft the regulations and another trying to force a deadline for EPA to respond to years-old petitions asking it to decide on issuing such rules. In response, EPA has said that it has discretion under prior appellate court rulings and the air law to determine when to issue regulations for CAFOs. The agency also says that before developing any CAFO air rules it would first have to review whether emissions from the facilities endanger public health and welfare. EPA says that it has deference to decide whether and when to launch such an endangerment finding at a time of limited budget resources. One lawsuit seeking CAFO air rules has been pending for months in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. In the suit, Samuel Zook, et al. v. EPA, Iowa residents want the court to reverse a lower court ruling that rejected their claims that the air law includes a mandate for EPA to craft the regulations.