On Friday, Sierra Club took a significant step in its ongoing effort to compel the EPA to enforce federal air quality standards set nearly a decade ago under the Obama administration by filing a lawsuit that requires EPA to recognize the failure of many states to submit compliance plans for reducing smog levels in their communities.
Today, EPA announced it will abandon its ongoing reconsideration of the current underprotective air quality standards for ozone and restart the rulemaking process.
People across the country concerned for their environment and health, including many in Texas, testified at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s public hearing regarding the federal agency’s proposal to “bump up” the ozone pollution nonattainment designations for the current ozone standard from marginal to moderate across the country, which includes the greater Houston, San Antonio, and Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) areas