Texas Sues EPA for 24th Time in Obama Administration History







For a 24th time, the state of Texas has sued the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in a fight over the regulatory efforts of the Obama administration since 2009. This time, Texas filed suit over the Regional Haze State Implementation Plan or SIP, the one that covers the issue of pollution drifting from Texas coal-fired power plants into the Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge in southern Oklahoma.

Texas is challenging the SIP as it pertains to air quality also in the Guadalupe Mountains National Park east of El Paso and the Big Bend National Park on the Texas and Mexico border.

“We’re disappointed that they’ve chosen to litigate,” said Chrissy Mann, senior representative with the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign. “If the state doesn’t do that, then the EPA has to go in and issue a federal plan. And in the end, what happened is the EPA rejected the Texas plan because the state didn’t recognize that many of these facilities could actually reduce their sulfur dioxide pollution.”

Texas environmental officials contend the state is complying with the Clean Air Act and the Obama administration is illegally intefering with the state’s right to regulate its utilities. They also argue the EPA’s plan to require installation of scrubbers and other pollution-control equipment at the power plants would be too expensive. The EPA plan would apply to 15 units at coal-fired electric-generating units in Texas.

It was in early January when the EPA released its final action to partially approve and disapprove the Texas 2009 Regional Haze State Implementation Plan and the Oklahoma 2010 Regional Haze SIP.