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On March 24, 2025, a webpage was added to the EPA website announcing the creation of an electronic mailbox to allow impacted regulated community to request a Presidential Exemption under Section 112(i)(4) of the Clean Air Act (CAA). Eligible industry was given until March 31, 2025, to submit an e-mail request. “The [CAA] allows the […]
In a letter dated January 13, 2025, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) withdrew its request for a Clean Air Act (CAA) waiver for its Advanced Clean Fleet Regulation. The original request sought a waiver to allow the state to enact rules to require all medium- and heavy-duty trucks operating within the Golden State to […]
In the fourth quarter (Q4) of 2024, the EPA finalized 215 settlement agreements with companies small and large across the United States. This represents a decrease in enforcement actions—down from 482 penalties issued in Q3. The actions taken resulted in $7,739,116 in fines. Here are some of the highlights. CAA violations yield biggest fine from […]
The EPA and the Department of Justice (DOJ) recently announced two settlements with energy operators located in Pennsylvania. XTO Energy Inc. (XTO) and Hilcorp Energy Company (Hilcorp) agreed to resolve alleged Clean Air Act (CAA) and Pennsylvania Air Pollution Control Act violations involving their oil and gas production operations in the state. Under the settlement, […]
On October 16, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) declined to put a hold on a Clean Air Act (CAA) regulation for New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) that went into effect on July 8, 2024. The regulation addresses greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from fossil fuel-fired electric generating units (EGUs) by: “The justices denied emergency requests […]
On October 21, 2024, the U.S. Supreme Court (SCOTUS) agreed to hear several EPA-related cases to determine which federal courts are the proper venues for specific EPA actions. The specific cases are: Although the Oklahoma and Pacificorp cases appear to be unrelated, they’ve been consolidated to determine “which courts can hear objections to a rejection […]
The EPA announced food producer Hiland Dairy Foods Company LLC of Norfolk, Nebraska, has agreed to pay a $93,107 civil penalty to resolve alleged violations of the federal Clean Air Act’s (CAA) chemical accident prevention provisions. According to the EPA, the company stores more than 10,000 pounds of anhydrous ammonia, a regulated toxic substance, and […]
After calling for more accessible public emissions records from Colorado, the EPA abruptly changed course and “proposed to rescind its previous directive that required the State of Colorado to collect and maintain critical air pollution data from the oil and gas industry,” states a Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER) press release. “A coalition of […]
On August 30, 2024, the EPA published a final rule for “National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP): Reciprocating Internal Combustion Engines and New Source Performance Standards (NSPS): Internal Combustion Engines; Electronic Reporting.” This amendment added electronic reporting provisions and made a small number of clarifications and corrections to these rules, as well as […]
On September 4, 2024, the EPA finalized its Reclassification of Major Sources as Area Sources Under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act (CAA) rule. “This rule implements the [CAA] language that allows a ‘major source’ of hazardous air pollutants (HAP) to reclassify as an ‘area source’ after acting to limit emissions,” according to the […]