BRIEF FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON, HARRIS COUNTY ATTORNEY, AND AIR ALLIANCE HOUSTON AS AMICI CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF APPELLANTS AND IN SUPPORT OF REVERSAL

The City of Houston, Harris County Attorney, and Air Alliance Houston argue that the district court abused its discretion by denying civil penalties and injunctive relief despite finding nearly one hundred actionable Clean Air Act violations at Exxon's Baytown complex. The brief contends that the court misapplied the 'seriousness' and 'economic benefit' factors of the Act, ignoring the public health risks of ozone and carcinogens in the Houston-Galveston-Brazoria Ozone Nonattainment Area. It further argues that the court's narrow interpretation of 'repeated' violations allows polluters to evade liability by frequently changing numeric emission limits.

• The district court is accused of abusing its discretion by denying any remedy—injunctive, monetary, or declaratory—despite finding nearly one hundred actionable Clean Air Act violations at Exxon's Baytown complex, which is the largest petrochemical complex in the United States.
• Amici argue the district court erred in its 'seriousness' assessment by ruling that less serious violations reduce the seriousness of more serious ones, and by claiming there was no credible evidence that emission events adversely affected human health.
• The brief highlights severe public health risks in Harris County, noting that ozone levels exceed national standards and that the area faces high cancer risks, particularly along the Houston Ship Channel corridor.
• The district court is criticized for finding zero economic benefit from non-compliance without providing a reasoned method, failing to account for costs Exxon avoided or delayed by not installing antipollution equipment.
• Amici contend that the district court's narrow interpretation of 'repeated' violations—requiring an identical numerical emission limit—allows companies to avoid liability by frequently modifying their permits.
• The brief argues that reporting, recordkeeping, and monitoring violations should be considered serious because they can mask actual emission releases and hinder the effectiveness of citizen enforcement.

APA

Earthjustice (2015). BRIEF FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON, HARRIS COUNTY ATTORNEY, AND AIR ALLIANCE HOUSTON AS AMICI CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF APPELLANTS AND IN SUPPORT OF REVERSAL. https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/25_houston20et20al_amicus20brief_05-22-2015.pdf

Chicago

Earthjustice. BRIEF FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON, HARRIS COUNTY ATTORNEY, AND AIR ALLIANCE HOUSTON AS AMICI CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF APPELLANTS AND IN SUPPORT OF REVERSAL. 2015. https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/25_houston20et20al_amicus20brief_05-22-2015.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=Earthjustice |title=BRIEF FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON, HARRIS COUNTY ATTORNEY, AND AIR ALLIANCE HOUSTON AS AMICI CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF APPELLANTS AND IN SUPPORT OF REVERSAL |date=22 May 2015 |url=https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/25_houston20et20al_amicus20brief_05-22-2015.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{earthjustice2015brief, author = {{Earthjustice}}, title = {{BRIEF FOR THE CITY OF HOUSTON, HARRIS COUNTY ATTORNEY, AND AIR ALLIANCE HOUSTON AS AMICI CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF APPELLANTS AND IN SUPPORT OF REVERSAL}}, institution = {Earthjustice}, year = {2015}, month = may, url = {https://earthjustice.org/wp-content/uploads/25_houston20et20al_amicus20brief_05-22-2015.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }