Air quality could ‘harm thousands of children’ after EPA rule struck down by Supreme Court

SALT LAKE CITY — The Environmental Protection Agency no longer has the authority to regulate some major Utah industries that contribute to air pollution, according to two recent Supreme Court rulings.

Last week, the Supreme Court rejected the Chevron Deference doctrine, which authorized the Environmental Protection Agency to regulate pollution from industrial sources, and put a hold on a plan to regulate air pollution between states.

Many Utah lawmakers supported the Supreme Court rulings. One, Sen. Todd Weiler, said the EPA was “on steroids” when it came to inspections.

Meanwhile, advocates say the decision will cause so much air pollution that it could harm children.

“This will harm the long-term health of hundreds of thousands of children,” said Dr. Brian Moench. “The cost is enormous.”

Moench said rulings striking down federal regulations on major state air pollution contributors favor industry at the expense of livelihoods.

“I am concerned about my health, the health of my family and the health of my patients,” he said.

Moench said the people most in favor of overturning the ruling are those who run Utah’s biggest polluting industries. “They have the most to gain from this,” he said. “And on the other side, who has the most to lose? The public health advocates.”

Some state and federal lawmakers saw it as a victory, saying the previous policy was unconstitutional.

“The EPA was kind of a federal agency on steroids that came to Utah like it was the new sheriff in town and told us all to say, ‘Here you go, here you go,’” Weiler said.

He stated that environmental protection regulations have returned to their proper place, i.e. they are subject to state control.

“We don’t need a bunch of bureaucrats in Washington making these decisions for us,” Weiler said.

Asked if regulating air pollution is a priority for lawmakers, Sen. Weiler said, “We’re going to have to figure it out, but we don’t want our citizens to be choking on dirty air. So we’re going to figure it out and hopefully we’ll find a solution to this problem in Utah.”

Moench admitted, however, that he is skeptical about the state’s ability to ensure clean air.

“We completely disagree with that,” Moench said. “In fact, I would characterize it not as a federal abuse of power that they overturned, but as an establishment of an abuse of power by the Supreme Court. I don’t think anyone, including our legislators, should be celebrating that.”

Weiler said Utah’s air quality has been steadily improving since 1991.

National air quality standards and regulations show that various parts of the state experience below-average or poor air quality conditions, which can worsen depending on the season.