Wheelabrator Baltimore, L.P. v. Mayor & City Council of Baltimore

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The City of Baltimore and the operator of a commercial waste-to-energy facility reached a settlement that resolved a case challenging the Baltimore Clean Air Act, a 2019 ordinance that set emission limits for incinerators, including stricter emission limits than required by the facility’s Title V permit for a number of pollutants as well as emission limits for pollutants not covered by the permit, including carbon dioxide. The case was currently pending before the Fourth Circuit after a federal district court in Maryland held that Maryland law preempted the local law. The settlement agreement requires the operator to invest in emissions control upgrades that meet or exceed the limits set by the local ordinance for some pollutants; the settlement does not establish limits on carbon dioxide emissions.