The Legislative History of Section 115

Abstract

The legislative history of the international air pollution provision of the Clean Air Act bolsters the case for using Section 115 to address the global environmental and public health crisis of climate change. Climate change was discussed in committee and on the House and Senate floor when Congress first enacted Section 115 in 1965. The 1970 Clean Air Act Amendments expressly brought “effects on … climate” within the ambit of Section 115. Subsequent amendments in 1977 and 1990 empowered the Environmental Protection Agency to deploy the Clean Air Act’s state implementation plan process and flexible regulatory mechanisms, including market mechanisms, to carry out Section 115. The legislative history also helps answers key interpretative questions, such as the meaning of “any air pollutant” in Section 115.

Keywords: Section 115, climate change, climate change law, Clean Air Act, international air pollution, environmental law