Montana coal advocates are cheering the U.S. Supreme Court’s Michigan vs. EPA decision, but say the EPA rule that the decision overturned has already had a negative impact.

"The Supreme Court overturning the EPA's rule, means that coal fired generators won't have to install some of the really expensive equipment that they would have had to to meet the ordinance," said Count on Coal Montana Spokesman Chuck Denowh. "That means that consumers aren't going to end up paying more for electricity as a result of this particular rule."

Although pro-coal advocates are happy about the decision, Denowh says the EPA emissions rules that were struck down yesterday have already caused damage.

"I believe Coal Strip would have had to install new equipment at their facility, so this ruling may mean that they won't have to do that," Denowh said. "But I do know that one coal-fired plant in Billings, the J.E. Corette plant, will close down as a result of this rule already, and they are not expected to open back up. So we lost a few hundred jobs there as a result of this rule and they aren't coming back."

The J. E. Corette plant is scheduled to go offline in August.

In the 5-4 decision issued by Justice Antonin Scalia, Scalia argues that the EPA must consider the cost of its regulations. From the bench, Scalia said it was not rational “to impose billions of dollars in economic costs in return for a few dollars in health or environmental benefits."

 

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