by Amanda A. Reeve Just as a state’s economic development and growth is impacted by its ability to build and maintain its highways and bridges and improve its transportation systems, so too is its air quality. After all, transportation conformity is a requirement of the Clean Air Act, specifically for those states that struggle with […]
by Patrick J. Paul With midterm elections looming, the prospects of a blue wave strengthening, and a consistent shuffling of the Trump cabinet, former Oklahoma Attorney General and current EPA administrator Scott Pruitt now finds himself in the hot seat. Fresh off a glowing self-evaluation in the form of EPA’s own 2017-18 Year in Review, […]
by Chris Colyer The status of a controversial rule establishing more stringent ambient air quality standards for ozone—promulgated by former President Barack Obama’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)—remains unclear following a series of developments under the current Trump Administration and the 115th United States Congress. Section 108 of the Clean Air Act requires EPA to identify, […]
by Patrick J. Paul In a demonstration that not all regulations solve the problems they were intended to, and a testament to the power of market conditions, owners of the controversial Navajo Generating Station (NGS) power plant near Lake Powell announced their intention to terminate their interest in the three unit, 2,500 megawatt facility following expiration […]
by Patrick J. Paul To the victor belong the spoils, and President-elect Donald Trump’s victory in the presidential election (get used to it) and Republican Congressional control will significantly impact environmental programs and priorities going forward. Among other campaign commitments, President-elect Trump promised to increase fossil fuel production and to repeal numerous environmental initiatives of […]
by Denise A. Dragoo On October 17, 2016, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia granted summary judgment to Murray Energy Corporation and its subsidiary coal companies, including UtahAmerican Energy, Inc. The decision requires the U.S. EPA to follow the mandate of Section 321 of the Clean Air Act, 42 U.S.C. […]
by Amanda A. Reeve John Quincy Adams is credited with saying: “Patience and perseverance have a magical effect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish.” This is certainly apropos for Arizona in light of recent federal actions regarding two very critical and intertwined air regulatory issues: a decision rendered by the Ninth Circuit Court of […]
by Amanda A. Reeve We have all heard, and likely even experienced its meaning on numerous occasions, the old adage of being stuck between a rock and a hard place. Finding oneself in this position is most unpleasant as it means there are no viable options out of the dilemma. Interestingly enough, Yuma County, Arizona […]
by Patrick J. Paul On Thursday, April 14th, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) Director Misael Cabrera testified before Congress regarding naturally occurring ozone levels in parts of Arizona making it impossible to comply with standards proposed last fall by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) seeking to reduce ozone. Cabrera was testifying in […]
by Stephen W. Smithson On March 24, 2016, the Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) finalized new regulations (https://s3.amazonaws.com/public-inspection.federalregister.gov/2016-04800.pdf) for workplace silica exposure. The prior regulations were adopted in 1971 (http://ehstoday.com/osha/osha-issues-final-rule-silica), and OSHA has been considering revised regulations since the Clinton administration (http://www.wsj.com/articles/obama-administration-issues-rule-to-limit-exposure-to-silica-dust-1458828839). Silica exposure is common throughout many industries, as it is […]
