Utah Physicians for a Healthy Env't v. Diesel Power Gear LLC

374 F. Supp. 3d 1124
District Court, D. Utah·Decided March 12, 2019·No. Case No. 2:17-cv-32·Published·Cited by 5 cases

Opinion

ROBERT J. SHELBY, United States Chief District Judge

Plaintiff Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment (UPHE) brought this citizen enforcement action under the Clean Air Act (CAA). UPHE claims Defendants-three businesses and four individuals-violated the CAA and federally-enforceable Utah State Implementation Plan Regulations relating to the installation, removal, operation, and sale of emission control devices on diesel vehicles.1 UPHE filed four Partial Motions for Summary Judgment.2 Defendants also moved collectively for summary judgment.3 As explained below, Defendants' motion is denied. One of UPHE's motions is granted, one is denied, and two are granted in part and denied in part.

BACKGROUND

Defendant B&W Auto is a used automobile dealership that sells and repairs trucks, with a focus on custom built diesel trucks.4 Defendant David Sparks is owner and CEO of B&W Auto.5 Sparks also started and is CEO of Defendant Diesel Power Gear (DPG), a "lifestyle brand company" which sells "apparel and accessories for the diesel truck lifestyle."6 Defendant Joshua Stuart is CFO and COO of DPG.7 4x4 Anything, a division of DPG, is a "drop shipment fulfillment online retailer."8

*1131DieselSellerz.com is an online diesel truck marketplace that was previously dismissed from this case. Stuart is CFO and COO of DieselSeller.com. Defendant Keaton Hoskins was employed to provide sales and marketing services for DieselSellerz.com from 2013 through 2015.9

UPHE, a Utah-based non-profit organization, brought this suit asserting various CAA and Utah SIP claims against Defendants. UPHE claims Defendants modified diesel trucks in violation of emissions limitation standards, sold parts designed to evade emissions standards, and sold illegally-modified trucks. According to UPHE, Defendants' violations contribute pollution to air in the Wasatch Front, causing UPHE's members harm.10

As redress for these violations, UPHE seeks injunctive relief and civil penalties. On June 8, 2018, the court entered a stipulated preliminary injunction enjoining B&W Auto and Sparks from violating several provisions of the CAA.11

LEGAL STANDARD

Summary judgment is appropriate when "there is no genuine dispute as to any material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law."12 A dispute is genuine "if the evidence is such that a reasonable jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party."13 A fact is material if, under the governing substantive law, it could "affect the outcome of the suit."14 When applying this standard, the court is to "view the evidence and make all reasonable inferences in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party."15 "Cross-motions for summary judgment are to be treated separately; the denial of one does not require the grant of another."16

ANALYSIS

Defendants admit to conduct that violates the CAA but nevertheless move for summary judgment on all of UPHE's claims. They primarily argue UPHE lacks constitutional standing and that the individual Defendants cannot be held liable as "responsible corporate officers." UPHE moves for summary judgment on various claims in four separate Partial Motions for Summary Judgment. The court takes up the threshold issues raised in Defendants' Motion before turning to UPHE's Motions.

I. Standing

Defendants argue UPHE lacks standing to bring its claims. To satisfy Article III of the Constitution, a plaintiff must have standing to bring a claim in federal court.17 When the plaintiff is an association bringing suit on behalf of its members, it must show "[1] its members *1132would otherwise have standing to sue in their own right, [2] the interests at stake are germane to the organization's purposes, and [3] neither the claim asserted nor the relief requested required the participation of individual members in the lawsuit."18 Only the first element is in dispute here.19

To satisfy the first element, UPHE must show (1) at least one of its members has suffered an injury in fact that is "(a) concrete and particularized and (b) actual or imminent, not conjectural or hypothetical; (2) the injury is fairly traceable to [Defendants' illegal conduct]; and (3) it is likely, as opposed to merely speculative, that the injury will be redressed by a favorable decision."20 For the reasons that follow, the court concludes UPHE meets this standard.21

A. Injury in Fact

At the summary judgment stage, a plaintiff must "set forth by affidavit or other evidence specific facts [demonstrating injury in fact], which for purposes of the summary judgment motion will be taken to be true."22 The relevant showing is "not injury to the environment but injury to the plaintiff."23 And while "generalized harm" to the environment does not alone support standing, "if that harm in fact affects the recreational or even the mere [a]esthetic interest of the plaintiff, that will suffice."24 A person who has "reasonable concerns" about pollution suffers injury in fact when their concerns directly affect their recreational, aesthetic, or economic interests.25

UPHE provides affidavits from four of its members asserting various injuries relating to air pollution, including health and recreational harms.26 Each of the members suffers adverse health effects from elevated air pollution in the Wasatch Front or exposure to diesel exhaust.27 Some members are deterred from engaging in outdoor recreational activities due their concerns about fine particulate matter pollution.28

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Utah Physicians for a Healthy Env't v. Diesel Power Gear LLC, 374 F. Supp. 3d 1124 (D. Utah 2019).

374 F. Supp. 3d 1124 (Utah Physicians for a Healthy Env't v. Diesel Power Gear LLC) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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