Energy Industry Argues EPA Proposal On Carbon Emissions Ripe for Review

摘要

The Environmental Protection Agency's decision to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from existing power plants under Section 111 (d) of the Clean Air Act is a final agency action subject to judicial review, two trade associations argue in an amicus brief supporting Murray Energy Corp.'s effort to block the proposed regulation in federal appellate court (In re Murray Energy Corp., D.C. Cir., No. 14-1112, brie/is filed 12/23/14; Murray Energy Corp. v. EPA, D.C. Cir., No. 14-1151, briefs filed 12/23/14). The National Mining Association and the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity disputed the EPA's argument that the rule is a proposal that cannot yet be subjected to legal challenges. "EPA's contention that it has an open mind on the basic question of its authority to issue Section 111 (d) regulations and that it therefore may not issue a final Section 111 (d) rule at all is absurd," the trade associations said in a Dec. 23 brief filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. "The Agency has not only made a final decision to regulate, it has made that regulation its highest priority."