Environmental brief ~ DOT board rules against DC hazmat ban News
Environmental brief ~ DOT board rules against DC hazmat ban

[JURIST] In Tuesday's environmental law news, the US Department of Transportation's Surface Transportation Board official website] has announced it has upheld a petition by railroad company CSX Co. [corporate website] that contends a Washington DC City Council [official website] prohibition on hazardous materials within two miles of the Capitol building should be ruled invalid [decision text]. The Board's ruling has no regulatory authority, but may be cited when the case goes before the US District Court in DC on March 23. The City Council had voted down the ban [JURIST report] in November 2004, but reintroduced and approved the measure [official press release] on February 1, 2005. Reuters has more.

In other news,

  • Environmental and energy ministers from 20 countries, including the UK, US, China, India, and Brazil, are meeting in the UK for a 2 day summit to exchange ideas and discuss new technologies for decreasing fossil fuel dependence and air pollution. The discussions will not include any new binding committments on the part of any of the nations, but hopefully will lead to improvements in technology sharing and future international environmental agreements. BBC News has more.
  • The EPA [official website] has issued the Clean Air Mercury Rule (text not yet online, factsheet and press release from EPA) to permanently cap and reduce mercury emissions from coal-fired power plants. The US is the first country to regulate mercury from power plants. JURIST's Paper Chase has more.