EPA Gets Partial Win in State Cross-Border Pollution Appeal (2)

The EPA fell short in rejecting a petition from Maryland that sought to improve its air quality from cross-border pollution, but the agency was within its rights to reject the one from Delaware, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday.

For the most part, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit’s decision means the Environmental Protection Agency doesn’t have to consider the states’ request to order upwind states such as Pennsylvania to fully use existing catalytic controls to curb power plant releases of nitrogen oxides.

Nitrogen oxides contribute to ground-level ozone, a lung irritant that can worsen ...