A Win for Fish! Court Ruling Paves Way for Cooling-water Intake Rules

Cooling-water intakes across the U.S. kill billions of fish each year. In spite of this, most industries steadfastly oppose making facilities improvements capable of changing this. A recent decision by the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals may lead to regulations that require such improvements.

On Friday, July 23, 2010, the Court issued a very favorable decision concerning cooling-water intake structures at existing manufacturing facilities. In oral arguments held in New Orleans on December 1, 2009, Waterkeeper Alliance, Casco Baykeeper, Delaware Riverkeeper, Hudson Riverkeeper, Long Island Soundkeeper, Narragansett Baykeeper, NY/NJ Baykeeper, Santa Monica Baykeeper, the American Littoral Society, Natural Resources Defense Council and the Surfrider Foundation challenged a Bush-administration decision to keep the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from regulating these existing structures and their emissions. At the same time, two oil companies--ConocoPhilips and Andarko Petroleum--challenged EPA cooling water regulations now applied to new oil rigs.

Although usually hostile to environmentalists, the Court's ruling in this case was beneficial in two respects:

• First, EPA can now reconsider its original decision not to regulate cooling-water structures at existing manufacturing facilities. (EPA sought permission to do just that shortly after the Obama administration took office.)

• Second, the ConocoPhillips/Andarko challenge of cooling-water regulations for new oil rigs has been rejected.

The decision now opens the way to significant progress on cooling-water issues at the federal level. EPA not only retains the right to develop rules for new oil rigs, it also has been given the power to reconsider similar rules for existing manufacturing facilities.

Click here to read the entire decision as issued by the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals.

Although no firm schedule has been set, EPA is expected to propose new regulations in late 2010 with finalization coming in 2012.

Congratulations Waterkeepers!