President Barack Obama on Tuesday nominated Judge Sonia Sotomayor of New York to replace retiring Justice David Souter.
Sotomayor’s most notable environmental ruling in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals was the case Riverkeeper, Inc. v. EPA.
In a 2007 decision, Sotomayor found that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) could not use cost-benefit analysis in determing the best technology available for minimizing adverse impact on aquatic life under the Clean Water Act.
The ruling applied to the cooling water intake valves power plants.
Industry plaintiffs petitioned for judicial review, and in April 2008 the Supreme Court overturned Sotomayor’s decision by a vote of 6-3.
EPA has suspended the Cooling Water Intake Structure Regulations for existing large power plants, pending further rulemaking.
Sierra Club Executive Director Carl Pope is among the environmentalists praising Sotomayor’s nomination.
"As we learn more about her record, the Sierra Club is encouraged by Judge Sotomayor’s opinion in Riverkeeper, Inc. vs. EPA in which she ruled in favor of environmental protection and against attempts by the government to ignore true environmental benefits when enforcing clean water laws," Pope said in a statement.
"The Supreme Court plays an extremely vital role in directing the law surrounding issues like clean air, clean water, public lands and global warming. The decision two years ago in Massachusetts vs. EPA set the stage for the action finally being taken now by the Federal Government to begin curbing global warming pollution. In 2006, a sharply divided U.S. Supreme Court failed to uphold Clean Water Act protections that have been in place for the last 35 years (Rapanos v. United States and United States v. Carabell). This decision has left our clean water laws in turmoil," he continued.
Sotomayor’s confirmation is likely, because of Democratic control of the Senate, and because she already has been confirmed twice by the Senate for previous positions–including once under President George H.W. Bush.
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