EPA Issues Final Rule Tailoring Greenhouse Gas Permitting Requirements Under the Clean Air Act

On May 13, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rule (Tailoring Rule) that addresses Clean Air Act (CAA) permitting requirements for greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. EPA's Tailoring Rule—the fourth action in an ongoing EPA effort to regulate GHG emissions—establishes GHG emission level thresholds that determine when stationary source facilities must seek and obtain permits under the CAA's New Source Review Prevention of Significant Deterioration (PSD) and Title V Operating Permit programs. The Tailoring Rule is, in part, the product of the complicated interaction under the CAA between EPA's decision to regulate GHG emissions from automobiles, and the related effect that decision has on the permitting and regulation of GHGs from stationary sources, such as manufacturing and industrial facilities.