^®: CRE Regulatory Action of the Week

Court Refuses to Stay Mercury Rules
The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit denied the plaintiffs's motion to stay EPA's new mercury air rules pending the court's decision on the merits of the rules. The court also denied the plaintiffs's motion for expedited consideration of the rules.

This initial court decision does not necessarily mean that the court will ultimately reject the plaintiffs's challenge on the merits. It does, however, mean that the case will follow the normal briefing and decision schedule in the D.C. Circuit, and that the rules will stay in effect until and unless the court rules otherwise.

EPA's new mercury rules set a nationwide cap on emissions from approximately 600 coal-fire electric power plants. They also put a ceiling on allowable mercury pollution from each state beginning in 2010.

The rules are being challenged by several NGOs and by the states of California, Connecticut, Delaware, Illinois, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont and Wisconsin.