The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a case that would have passed judgment on the way the Environmental Protection Agency requires states to comply with air pollution rules.
The court declined to hear Ohio v. Sierra Club, a decision that upholds the ruling of the Sixth Circuit Court backing the Sierra Club, which wanted stricter EPA enforcement of the Clean Air Act.
At issue was the EPA’s enforcement of air pollution standards for Ohio. The agency in 2005 said Ohio did not comply with air quality standards in the Cincinnati area, which would have required the state to come up with a plan to reduce the particulate matter in the air. However, before the state submitted its plan, the region reached attainment status through other pollution-reduction programs.
Ohio argued that, because it had complied through other means, it was no longer required to abide by the Clean Air Act and submit a pollution-reduction plan. The EPA agreed.
But the Sierra Club challenged that decision, and the Sixth Circuit Court agreed that the EPA should have required Ohio to submit a plan to reduce air pollution based on the 2005 ruling that the state was in non-attainment.
The Supreme Court’s rejection of the case means the appeals court’s ruling will stand.
