California’s seven-month-old lawsuit seeking to force the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to allow it to implement its tailpipe greenhouse gas emissions restriction law was dismissed July 25. A three-judge panel of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals tossed the state’s complaint, stating it was procedurally flawed because EPA had not formally rejected California’s request for a Clean Air Act waiver at the time the complaint was filed in January. The Alliance for Automobile Manufacturers, which intervened in support of EPA, welcomed the ruling. Alliance spokesperson Charles Territo insisted that a waiver denial was proper because California’s law was “related to fuel economy and carbon dioxide” not smog forming pollutants, he said. “We’re not deterred,” responded Gennet Paauwe, California Air Resources Board spokesperson. “We are still vigorously seeking our waiver.” Kassie Siegel, attorney for the Center for Biological Diversity, said the dismissal was a procedural setback. However, she noted that the suit, as well as one filed in March, that is pending, aim to preserve state rights. The center and a number of environmental organizations intervened in the suit soon after it was filed at the beginning of this year, to bolster the Golden State’s position. The Bush Administration’s sole strategy on regulating greenhouse gases, Siegel said, has been “delay and Orwellian press conferences.” The Ninth Circuit motion is Docket No. 08-70011 Editor’s Note: For a more detailed report, please see our sister publication, Energy Meets Climate Challenge, E=MC2. It can be found at energymeetsclimate.com
