WA reacts to Supreme Court decision curbing EPA authority to regulate greenhouse gas emissions

The U.S. Supreme Court ruling Thursday to curb the Environmental Protection Agency’s ability to regulate power plant greenhouse gas emissions means that — at least for now — such efforts will be undertaken by state governments.

Gov. Jay Inslee slammed the court’s decision in news conference, condemning it as a “stunning reversal of environmental law” that “took a wrecking ball to the ability of the federal government to restrain pollution.” 

Inslee said Washington must redouble its efforts to fight climate change and reduce pollution in the absence of federal action. 

“We are sounding the alarm and we’re proud of what we’ve done, but this decision makes it clear that we’ll have to accelerate our efforts when it comes to climate change and pollution,” he said. 

In Washington, state laws now in place seek to phase out the use of fossil fuels in power production, increase the use of low or zero-carbon motor fuels and develop a cap-and-invest program to reduce greenhouse gas pollution over time.