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San Francisco, CA — The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals today upheld South Coast Air Quality Management District (SCAQMD) zero-emission standard for boilers and water heaters, rejecting an industry challenge to a landmark clean air rule that will clean up pollution from industrial and commercial equipment. The People’s Collective for Environmental Justice, Sierra Club, and Industrious Labs, with representation from Earthjustice and Donahue, Goldberg & Herzog, intervened to help defend the standard in court.
SCAQMD passed its zero-emission boiler rule in 2024 to help address the persistent air quality problems that have made the Los Angeles region the most smog-polluted in the nation and led the U.S. EPA to designate it as being in “extreme” violation of health-based air quality standards. The region’s smallest industrial boilers alone are responsible for nearly 10% of smog-forming nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from all stationary sources in the region. Rule 1146.2 will reduce smog-forming NOx pollution by 5.6 tons per day—equivalent to nearly half the NOx emissions from every car in the region combined.
Today’s ruling directly impacts more than 1.3 million water heaters and industrial boilers used in large facilities and manufacturing facilities across Southern California—a major source of smog-forming pollution that threatens the health of nearby residents. When fully implemented, the boiler rule will avoid over 2,800 early deaths, 11,800 cases of asthma, and 300,000 lost work and school days, yielding over $95 billion in health benefits.
