Advocates Blast EPA Move to Delay Steel Mill Air Rule Deadlines

The EPA’s “blatantly unlawful” final decision to delay air emission rule deadlines for steel mills shut out affected communities from having a say in the extension, according to an opening brief filed by clean air advocates Monday.

The Environmental Protection Agency promulgated stricter standards in 2024 after being compelled by court order to tighten up air toxic limits for the integrated iron and steel sector, but the agency’s recent interim final rule punts those compliance deadlines by two years without notice-and-comment, according to the brief filed in the US Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit.

The EPA “had ample ...