Over on E&E News (paid subscription only), Darren Samuelsohn reports that a federal judge has applied his boot to the derriere of the U.S. EPA:

A federal judge lashed out at U.S. EPA yesterday for pursuing industry-friendly regulations at the same time it missed statutory deadlines to control toxic air pollution from small industrial plants.

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Judge Paul Friedman of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia criticized EPA for focusing on other priorities as opposed to issuing regulations that address about a third of toxic air pollution.

"EPA has been grossly delinquent in making serious efforts to comply" with the Clean Air Act, Friedman said in his 28-page opinion (PDF).

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And he put some oomph behind it:

Friedman’s opinion includes an order placing EPA on schedule to complete 50 toxic emission regulations. The first four industrial categories must be regulated by mid-December, with staggered deadlines for the remaining industries spread out until June 2009.

Good stuff. You’ll probably hear more about it in tomorrow’s Daily Grist.

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