EPA has approved Texas' narrowed request to issue greenhouse gas (GHG) permits for large facilities, but the agency is warning the state to strictly honor its commitments given its stance in pending litigation that EPA is barred from requiring states to permit GHGs until EPA amends the federal program as required by the Supreme Court. In a set of decisions released Oct. 31, EPA rescinded its 2011 federal implementation plan (FIP) that had preempted state authority to permit GHG emissions at new and modified facilities in the Lone Star State and approved a state implementation plan (SIP) proposed by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to implement the federal program using state authority. Relevant documents are available on InsideEPA.com. See page 2 for details. "EPA's rescission of the majority of the FIP and its approval of the majority of the Texas GHG SIP are predicated on the understanding that the State of Texas will implement the [permit] program requirements for greenhouse gases in accordance with TCEQ's representations," EPA says in both documents.
展开▼
