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American Petroleum Institute v. United States Environmental Protection Agency

858 F.2d 261 (1988)

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American Petroleum Institute v. United States Environmental Protection Agency

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
858 F.2d 261 (1988)

Facts

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) (defendant) issued regulations that effectively required offshore drilling companies to use mineral oil, as opposed to diesel oil, as a lubricant additive to the mud used to lubricate the drilling pipe on offshore rigs off the coast of Alaska. Typically, mud was used to lubricate the drilling pipe, and this mud could be disposed of in the waters surrounding the rig. However, occasionally an additional lubricant was needed. This additional lubricant, in the form of a pill, consisted of more mud and a considerable amount of diesel oil or mineral oil. According to EPA regulations, if these pills contained diesel oil, they could not be disposed of in the water surrounding the rig but rather could only be disposed of in hazardous waste sites on land. If the pills contained mineral oil, they could be disposed of in the water surrounding the rig. This effectively required offshore companies to use mineral oil rather than diesel oil. The American Petroleum Institute (API) and four oil companies (plaintiffs) challenged this regulation.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Smith, J.)

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Casebooks

Environmental Law

Key Terms