A federal appeals court on Tuesday, April 15 upheld the agency’s pollution limits for mercury and air toxics from power plants. In a 61-page ruling, a divided three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit upheld the rule known as MATS, rejecting challenges from states and industry groups. Judge Brett Kavanaugh, an appointee of President George W. Bush, dissented on part of the ruling on the issue of cost — specifically, whether the EPA is obligated to consider industry costs in deciding whether regulation of hazardous air pollutants from power plants is appropriate.
