A U.S. Supreme Court decision limiting the scope of the Environmental Protection Agency's greenhouse gas permitting program won't directly impact its efforts to regulate carbon dioxide from power plants (Util. Air Regulatory Grp. v. EPA, U.S., No. 12-1146,6/23/14). But the June 23 decision written by Justice Antonin Scalia is providing plenty of rhetorical ammunition to industry groups that argue the agency's proposed carbon dioxide standards for existing power plants exceed its statutory authority. In a footnote, Scalia acknowledged the EPA's authority to regulate carbon dioxide emissions from industrial sources such as power plants under Section 111 of the Clean Air Act, but attorneys said his opinion is full of language regarding regulatory overreach that should caution the agency as it readies its rules.
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