The legal battle is underway between Oklahoma and other states that filed a legal challenge months ago to the Environmental Protection Agency’s proposed new ozone standard, one that was released last fall. More filings were made late last week in federal court with Oklahoma and other critics contending the 70 parts per bill is too low and impossible for some cities to achieve.
The EPA has until July 22 to respond and the briefs will be finished by September followed by oral arguments this fall and a possible court decision in 2017.
Oklahoma was joined by Arizona, Arkansas, New Mexico, North Dakota and Texas. The states filed suit after the nation’s largest coal mining company, Murray Energy Corp. was the first party to file a legal challenge. They were eventually joined by the National Association of Manufacturers and other industry groups in claiming the new regulation established an unattainable mandate that will slow economic growth opportunities.
The Sierra Club and three other environmental groups contended the standards do not go far enough to protect public health.
In their latest filings, the states cited the case of Sunland Park, New Mexico as a small town near the borders with Texas and Mexico as an example of a town that won’t be able to meet the new standards because of pollution from Mexico. In their filing, the states argued, “By imposing an unachievable standard, the Rule has made it impossible for New Mexico and many other States to fulfill their” responsibility to meet air standards.
