Appalachian Power Co. v. EPA case brief

Appalachian Power Co. v. EPA case brief summary
249 F.3d 1032 (D.C. Cir. 2001)

CASE SYNOPSIS: Petitioners, Midwestern and southeastern states, electric generating/industrial facilities (EGU's), and other interested parties, sought review of orders of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) promulgating a rule that requires many nitrogen oxide-emitting facilities in several Midwestern and southeastern states to conform to emission limits set by the EPA, pursuant to § 126 of the Clean Air Act (CAA), 42 U.S.C.S. § 7426.

CASE FACTS: The EPA issued its final rule to control emissions of nitrogen oxide ("NOx") under section 126 of the CAA. In its ruling, the EPA made final its findings that stationary sources of NOx emissions in twelve upwind states and the District of Columbia contributed significantly to ozone nonattainment in northeastern states. This finding triggered direct federal regulation of stationary sources of NOx in the upwind states. Covered sources must obtain NOx emission allowances to cover their emissions, adopt additional emission controls, or cease operations. Petitioners challenged various aspects of the rule as inconsistent with the Clean Air Act, arbitrary and capricious, and technically deficient.

DISCUSSION

• The court of appeals upheld most aspects of the rule but remanded several particulars to the Agency for reconsideration. 
• Specifically, it remanded to allow the Agency to: 
• (1) properly justify either the current or a new set of EGU utilization growth factors to be used in estimating utilization in 2007, and 
• (2) to either alter or properly justify its categorization of cogenerators that sell electricity to the electric grid as EGUs.

CONCLUSION: The Environmental Protection Agency's rule on transboundary air pollution was vacated-in-part and remanded to allow the agency to (1) properly justify either the current or a new set of EGU utilization growth factors and (2) either alter or properly justify its categorization of cogenerators that sell electricity to the electric grid as EGUs. With respect to all other issues, the petitions were denied.