Ensuring EPA Regulates Greenhouse Gases
The landmark Supreme Court decision in Massachusetts v. EPA established that greenhouse gases are pollutants under the Clean Air Act, laying the legal foundation for federal action on climate change.
What Is Massachusetts v. EPA?
Massachusetts v. EPA is one of the most important climate cases in U.S. history. In 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that greenhouse gases qualify as air pollutants under the Clean Air Act and that the Environmental Protection Agency has the authority to regulate them.
The decision transformed climate law in the United States and established a legal foundation for federal efforts to address climate pollution and its impacts on public health and the environment.
Massachusetts v. EPA Litigation
The case originated from a petition filed in 1999 by the International Center for Technology Assessment (ICTA), Center for Food Safety’s sister organization, requesting that EPA regulate greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act.
After EPA declined to act, a coalition of states, local governments, and environmental organizations challenged the agency’s decision in court.
In a landmark 2007 ruling, the Supreme Court held that greenhouse gases are pollutants covered by the Clean Air Act and that EPA must determine whether those emissions endanger public health and welfare.
The decision fundamentally changed federal climate policy and remains one of the most influential environmental rulings in American history.
Climate Change and Our Work
Massachusetts v. EPA established for the first time that greenhouse gases are that greenhouse gases emissions qualified as pollutants under the Clean Air Act and can be regulated by EPA.
The decision became the foundation for many federal climate protections and future legal actions that followed. Overnight, conversations in the highest echelons of authority changed from “should we address climate change” to “what is the best way to try and address the climate crisis.”
The case began with a legal petition drafted and filed by the International Center for Technology Assessment (ICTA), Center for Food Safety’s sister organization, in 1999. The groundbreaking decision eight years later was ultimately the result of ICTA’s legal petition.
The Supreme Court’s ruling in Massachusetts v. EPA confirmed that EPA has authority under the Clean Air Act to address greenhouse gas emissions when they endanger public health and welfare. Unfortunately, subsequent court decisions such as West Virginia v. EPA in 2022, have limited EPA’s ability to regulate climate pollution, but Massachusetts v. EPA remains a foundational precedent supporting federal action on climate change and a cornerstone of federal climate regulation.
