Air Case Law Update - 2022-2023: Arkansas Environmental Federation May 18th Air Seminar Presentation

The Arkansas Environmental Federation (“AEF”) held its Annual Air Seminar in Little Rock, Arkansas, on May 18th.

Topics addressed at the Seminar included:

• Arkansas Department of Energy & Environment (“AE&E”) Director’s Office Report

• Environmental Justice

• Environmental Justice: How Other States Changing Air Permitting Practices

• Transportation Emissions

• PM2.5 NAAQS

• State of the Air

• Air Division Round Table

My presentation was titled:

Air Case Law Update 2022-2023 (“Presentation”)

The Presentation generally addressed three topics:

• Air Judicial/Administrative Decisions/Guidance
• Air Enforcement/Citizen Suit Actions Filed/Pending
• Air Consent Administrative Orders

Specific issues addressed included:

• Revised Cross-State Air Pollution Update Rule/Ozone: Federal Appellate Court Addressing Challenge to analytical technique Utilized by EPA (Midwest Ozone Group Challenge)
• Interstate Transport/Ozone: Arkansas Petitions Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals Challenging EPA’s State Implementation Plan Disapproval
• Clean Air Act National Ambient Air Quality Standards (Litigation Driving EPA NAAQS and Related Activity)
• Ohio State Implementation Plan/Air Nuisance Rule: Challenge to EPA’s Removal of Rule
• Reactivation/New Source Review: EPA Determination that Virgin Islands refinery Must Obtain PSD Permit
• Scope of Title V Petition to Object Review (Does it Include Clean Air Act Title I Preconstruction Permitting Issues?)
• Title V Clean Air Act: U.S. EPA Grants in Part and Denies in Part Two Petitions Objecting to a Crossett, Arkansas, Papermill Renewal
• Federally Permitted Releases/CERCLA (Superfund): Federal Court Addresses Status of Emissions from Shipped Lead-Acid Batteries Covered by Smelter’s Clean Air Act Permit
• Title VI of the Civil Rights Act/South Coast Air Quality Management District: Earthjustice Complaint Submitted to United States EPA
• Oakland Athletics Strike Out: California Appellate Court Rejects Team’s Petition Seeking Regulation of Metal-shredding Operation Under California Hazardous Waste Law
• EPA Clean Air Act Enforcement (Referencing Stationary Engines Enforcement Initiative)
• Other EPA Clean Air Act Enforcement Initiatives
  • Flares
  • Cement manufacturing
  • Glass manufacturing
  • Fertilizer manufacturing
  • Explosive manufacturing
  • Refineries
• Criminal Enforcement/Clean Air Act – False Statement/Risk Management Program
• Environmental Criminal Enforcement (Additional Examples)
• State Criminal Enforcement (Unlaw Burning)
• Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Systems/Landfill Methane Leak Detection: EPA Approves Alternative Test Method (SnifferDRONE)
• Arkansas Air Enforcement Examples
  • Types of Facilities Involved Over the Last 12 Months
  • Types of Violations Over the Last 12 Months

A copy of the slides of the Presentation which provide additional detail can be found here.