Federal court rules against Texas in greenhouse gas case

EPA to regulate TX emissions

Alex Wukman, Dec 30, 10.

A federal appeals court ruled against Texas’ attempt to block the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from implementing new greenhouse gas regulations, reported Reuters. The ruling caps a longstanding feud between the state of Texas and the EPA over who can and can’t issue permits. According to the Associated Press the battle “has put the health of Texas residents and the environment at risk.”

According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the EPA has also stated that, since Governor Rick Perry has refused to implement new clean air regulations, the agency will now take direct control of carbon emission rules in Texas. The EPA’s recent decision is expected to damage an already strained relationship with congress. The situation is so frayed that incoming House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) is reported to have said “EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson would soon be testifying at oversight hearings so often that she should reserve a personal parking place on Capitol Hill.”

In a Wall Street Journal op-ed Upton and Americans for Prosperity president Tim Philips stated that the EPA’s plans to regulate carbon emissions “represents an unconstitutional power grab that will kill millions of jobs—unless Congress steps in.” Upton reportedly stated that the best solution, from an industry standpoint, would be for Congress to overturn EPA’s regulations outright. However, other tactics that are being considered include a two-year moratorium on EPA regulations, defunding the agency entirely or blocking funds for EPA’s climate change programs.

The remarks of Upton and other conservatives have caused concern on the left. Steven Cohen, Executive Director of Columbia University’s Earth Institute, writing in the Huffington Post, stated that President Obama needs to defend the EPA from attempts by House Republicans to cut the agency’s funding because “a well-funded EPA can help us manage the environment and ensure that the benefits of our economic growth outweigh the costs.” A December 24 editorial in the New York Times stated that President Obama has to provide Oval Office backing to the EPA if any anti-pollution initiatives are going to be enforced.