Court Thwarts Important Clean Air Program to Reduce Smog

A three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia granted a request to delay implementation of a major clean air program aimed at curbing smog across the eastern United States yesterday. At issue is a US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) program requiring 1.2 million tons of reductions in smog-forming pollutants in a number of eastern states.

“These reductions are critical in protecting children and other vulnerable populations from both short- and long-term lung damage,” said Joe Goffman, an Environmental Defense Fund (EDF) attorney. “In addition, the reductions would provide vital protection against continued acid deposition in our forests, lakes and streams.”

The court granted a request by several states to delay their implementation of the program. The three-judge panel included two of the same judges that recently issued a setback to EPA’s national clean air standards for smog and soot. It is important to recognize that the court did not find that the EPA smog-reduction program was invalid.

“What’s so surprising about this decision is that EPA gave the states so much implementation flexibility to begin with,” said Sarah Wade, an EDF economist. “This delay is particularly frustrating since the states have had ample time to prepare their clean air plans.” The EPA smog reduction program allows states to rely on flexible market-based mechanisms to achieve the reductions, and gives states until the year 2007 to achieve ultimate compliance with the reductions.