The lawsuit asks a judge to declare the California Air Resources Board does not have the authority to issue these rules. The trade groups say that only the federal government can regulate railroads because it is an interconnected industry that crosses state lines. They note that more than 500 companies all share the 180,000 miles of track across 49 states, Canada and Mexico.
Another argument from opponents of the California rule is that transporting goods through railways contributes fewer planet-warming emissions than if those goods were trucked. The transportation sector contributed the largest share of greenhouse gas emissions in 2021, but rail only made up 2% of those emissions, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
Adrian Martinez, a lawyer with environmental nonprofit Earthjustice, called the fate of the California rule “a matter of life and death.” “For those of us that lived next to the railyards, it’s significant because it’s a step towards reducing something that is very harmful for our communities,” she said of the rule.
The top four most polluted cities for ozone and year-round particle pollution in the U.S. are all in California, according to the American Lung Association.
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