SC limits federal power in curbing carbon emissions

WASHINGTON: The US Supreme Court on Thursday restricted the ability of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to impose wider regulations to limit carbon emissions from power plants and shift the industry from coal towards other energy sources, a ruling in line with ideology of the Conservative majority of the bench.

In the West Virginia v EPA case, a 6-3 ruling saw all the six conservative judges voting to limit the federal agency’s powers. At stake was the interpretation of a provision of the Clean Air Act, and whether EPA had the authority to impose large scale limits on carbon emissions across the power industry. The majority ruled it did not.

The court’s decision confirms a wider reset underway in American jurisprudence, nearly a week after the court, first, narrowed the ability of states to impose restrictions on carrying guns in public, and then, overturned Roe v Wade which enshrined access to abortion as a constitutional right.

Chief Justice John Roberts, speaking for the majority, said, “Capping carbon dioxide emissions at a level that will force a nationwide transition away from the use of coal to generate electricity may be a sensible ‘solution to the crisis of the day’. But it is not plausible that Congress gave EPA the authority to adopt on its own such a regulatory scheme.”

The three liberal judges on the bench, who dissented saw the verdict as a blow in the battle against one of the biggest crisis of the times. Thursday’s court verdict still allows EPA to issue emission limits at power plants, but strikes at its authority to engineer a large scale shift in the nature of those plants towards clear energy sources.

It also deals a blow to President Joe Biden’s plans to battle climate crisis as a priority.

“My administration will continue using lawful executive authority, including the EPA’S legally-upheld authorities, to keep our air clean, protect public health, and tackle the climate crisis,” he said on Thursday.