emission standards Archives

Aug 8, 2018

Trump Administration Proposes Nationwide Cuts to Vehicle Fuel Efficiency and Emission Standards

On August 2, 2018, the Trump administration proposed significant cuts to vehicle fuel efficiency and emission standards, and challenged the right of states, particularly California, to set more stringent tailpipe pollution standards. The proposed rule is called the “Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE)” Vehicles Rule for Model Years 2021-2026.” (Click here to read the proposed rule (pre-publication.)) The SAFE Vehicles Rule would lock in Model Year (MY) 2020 Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards and carbon dioxide emission standards applicable to passenger cars and light trucks manufactured for sale in the U.S. in MYs 2021 through 2026. The pre-publication copy was… Read more

Jan 11, 2017

Possible Change to EPA Toxic Rules for Large Boilers

On December 23, 2016, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled that Environmental Protection Agency’s (“EPA”) toxic pollution requirements for large industrial boilers were flawed, siding with arguments made by environmental groups. The decision left the existing rule in place while ordering the EPA to make the necessary corrections in the boiler, Maximum Achievable Control Technology Standards for Boilers, commonly known as Boiler MACT. Industrial groups have expressed optimism that the incoming Trump administration will take the opportunity to revise how the EPA sets toxic pollutant standards across the board. For example, the Trump administration’s EPA… Read more

Aug 15, 2016

Oil, Gas Industry Air Pollution Standards Will Not be Reopened

The 2012 emission standards (“ESs”) applicable to the oil and gas industry will not be reopened by the U.S. EPA despite requests by the American Petroleum Institute and other industry and environmental groups’ petitions. The ESs, which include the first federal air standards for natural gas wells that are hydraulically fractured, were intended to curb emissions of volatile organic compounds and hazardous air pollutants from those wells. The standards require new hydraulically fractured gas wells to utilize technology known as a “green completion” to capture gas that otherwise would escape. The issues under the proposed rule that the EPA will… Read more