States Win Suit To Stop New EPA Standards

"This is an enormous victory for clean air and for the enforcement of the law and an overwhelming rejection of the Bush administration's efforts to gut the law," said New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer, who led the lawsuit for the states. "It is a rejection of a flawed policy." Peter Lehner, Spitzer's top environmental lawyer, said the decision applies to about 800 power plants and up to 17,000 factories nationwide. Under the Clean Air Act, operators who do anything more than routine maintenance are required to add more pollution-cutting devices. Under the proposed change, industrial facilities could have avoided paying for expensive emissions-cutting devices if they spent less than 20 percent of the plant's value, Lehner said. The EPA had argued the rule change would not increase pollution. http://www.phillyburbs.com/pb-dyn/news/1-03182006-628178.html

Note: http://www.phillyburbs....