States Fear EPA Mine Cleanup Rule Could Preempt Billions In Assurances

More than a dozen states are opposing environmentalists' lawsuit that seeks to compel EPA to reverse course and set Superfund financial requirements for the hardrock mining sector, with state officials warning that an EPA rule would preempt state mandates and prompt a flood of lawsuits threatening billions of dollars in cleanup assurances that states hold. “[T]he States hold billions of dollars in financial assurances that might be subject to preemption challenges if EPA had reached a different conclusion in the...