Fifth Circuit: Citizen Suit Exposure for Thousands of Title 5 Deviations
On May 27, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (the “Fifth Circuit”) vacated a lower Texas court’s ruling that imposed a $0 penalty for alleged violations under the Clean Air Act (“CAA”). This decision, styled Environment Texas Citizen Lobby, Inc. v. ExxonMobil Corp.[1] (the “Citizen Lobby Case”) reinstated a citizen’s suit alleging thousands of violations of the CAA, and seeking hundreds of millions in penalties. This decision is a significant victory for potenti
EPA Removes Exemptions for Emissions During Startup, Shutdown and Malfunctions
On May 22, 2015, USEPA issued a final rule that clarifies their position on exemptions and affirmative defenses to emissions during startup, shutdown and malfunction events. (“SSM”). This rule is a response to a petition filed by Sierra Club to require EPA to invalidate certain provisions of state implementation plans (“SIPs”), including Ohio’s, following the D.C. Circuit’s recent decision that Clean Air Act (“CAA”) emissions limits must apply “continuously.”[1] In this rule,
Unavoidable Malfunctions to Get Penalties Under EPA's New Proposal
On September 17, 2014, United States Environmental Protection Agency (“USEPA”) released a supplemental notice of proposed rulemaking that significantly modified its proposed revisions to its startup, shutdown and malfunction (“SSM”) policy under the Clean Air Act (“CAA”). In an attempt to ensure that emissions limitations required under the CAA are applied “continuously”, USEPA proposed in February 2013 to eliminate provisions allowing for blanket exemptions from emissions l
