Suit May Test Next Administration's Stance On Title V Permits Scope

摘要

Environmentalists are challenging EPA's inaction on a Colorado cement plant operating permit that fails to include a compliance schedule - despite the fact the plant has violated its permitted emission limits - in a recently filed lawsuit that may test the next administration's position on the scope of Title V operating permits. One environmentalist involved in ongoing Title V litigation says the suit will likely serve as the first test of whether the new presidential administration will agree with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 2nd Circuit, which ruled that Title V permits - umbrella permits designed to house all federal requirements - must include compliance schedules when the facility is in the midst of an enforcement action. The new administration's position, whether Democratic or Republican, will be crucial for environmentalists' efforts to ensure that EPA and states enforce emissions limits included in the permits by including written mandates for compliance after a violation has occurred. Environmentalists have been seeking to expand the 2nd Circuit precedent set in New York Public Interest Research Group v. Whitman since the court first ruled on the issue in 2003. They have brought similar challenges to other EPA-approved permits, but have yet to win a clear ruling.