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Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR)
Announcements
EPA has received questions about the status of CAIR allowances allocated for 2009 and subsequent years.
On December 23, 2008, the D.C. Circuit remanded without vacature EPA's Clean Air Interstate Rule.
Read the court decision (PDF 4pp, 22k)
No public hearing was requested and none will be held for EPA's Rulemaking To Reaffirm the Promulgation of Revisions of the Acid Rain Program Rules.
On November 17, the United States filed a reply in support of its petition for rehearing in the Clean Air Interstate Rule case.
Read the Reply (PDF 10pp, 390k)
Attachment 1 (PDF 23pp, 137k)
Attachment 2 (PDF 12pp, 165k)
Analysis of Potential Quick Fix Legislative Changes to Address Court Decision, August 23, 2008. (PPT 12pp, 985k)
On September 24, 2008, The United States filed a petition for rehearing in the Clean Air Interstate Rule case.
Read the Petition (PDF 23pp, 1058k)
Declarations by Brian McLean and William Harnett (PDF 11pp, 454k)
Brian Mclean's Testimony on July 29, 2008 for the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works: EPA's preliminary assessment of the potential affect of the recent DC Circuit Court Decision on CAIR and EPA's programs (PDF, 15 pp. 57 KB) | Supplemental Attachments (PDF, 5 pp. 877 KB)
On July 11, 2008, the D.C. Circuit vacated EPA's Clean Air Interstate Rule. EPA is reviewing the Court's decisions and evaluating its impacts.
Read the Court's Opinion (PDF) (60pp, 221k)
On March 10, 2005, EPA issued the Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR). This rule provides states with a solution to the problem of power plant pollution that drifts from one state to another. CAIR covers 28 eastern states and the District of Columbia. The rule uses a cap and trade system to reduce the target pollutants—sulfur dioxide (SO2) and nitrogen oxides (NOx)—by 70 percent.
States must achieve the required emission reductions using one of two compliance options: (1) meet the state’s emission budget by requiring power plants to participate in an EPA-administered interstate cap and trade system that caps emissions in two stages, or (2) meet an individual state emissions budget through measures of the state’s choosing.
A closely related action is the Clean Air Mercury Rule (CAMR) that requires coal-fired electric utilities to reduce their emissions of mercury.
See also:
- CAIR and CAMR Implementation Training Workshops
- Frequent Questions
- Reports and Analyses
- Additional Resources
- Notice of Data Availability (NODA) -- NOx CAIR FIP Allocations
- Part 75 Certification Administrative Processes for CAIR NOx Units PDF (6 pp. 146 KB)
- Questions and Answers Concerning Non-EGUs Transitioning from the NOx Budget Trading Program to the CAIR NOx Program PDF (3 pp. 18 KB)
- Monitor Certification Procedures for CAIR NOx Units PDF (12 pp. 165 KB)
- EPA Rulemaking Actions on State's CAIR SIP Submissions
- CAIR Applicability Determinations
For technical information and rulemaking details, visit EPA’s Clean Air Interstate Rule (CAIR) Web site.