EPA to hear oral argument on Louisiana’s Regional Haze Plan That Could Increase Air Pollution Across Central United States

New Orleans, La. - Today, the Fifth Circuit Court to hear oral argument from the Sierra Club and the National Parks Conservation Association on whether the Clean Air Act’s regional haze provisions require two of Louisiana's largest sources of air pollution to reduce visibility and air pollution.  

Under the Clean Air Act rule, Louisiana was required to implement a regional haze clean-up plan a decade ago to reduce harmful pollution from major sources like coal-fired power plants. Entergy’s R.S. Nelson and Cleco’s Dolet Hills plants in Louisiana together emit more than 25,000 tons of harmful sulfur dioxide a year--far more than any other sources in the state. EPA’s own analysis demonstrated that those plants cause or contribute harmful haze pollution, and that requiring those plants to install modern, industry-standard pollution controls would be cost-effective and significantly improve visibility at national parks and wilderness areas, like Breton National Wildlife Refuge in Louisiana and the Upper Buffalo in Arkansas.

In 2017, however, Louisiana submitted to EPA a long-overdue haze clean-up plan that does not require controls at a single source of harmful pollution. Despite its own analysis showing that significant pollution reductions from those coal plants would be cost effective and improve air quality in national parks, the The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) simply rubber-stamped Louisiana’s do-nothing plan. As a result of Louisiana and EPA’s failure to do what the Clean Air Act requires, Sierra Club and National Parks Conservation Association, represented by Earthjustice challenged the state’s plan in federal court.

“The possibility of having greater, necessary oversight that improves the quality of life of Louisianans is very exciting to me. So many citizens are unaware of the current practices of the industry around us and unclear on how policy could better regulate those practices,” said Angelle Bradford, advisor for The SU 771 Alliance, a Sierra Student Coalition, and a Delta Chapter member.

The Environmental Protection Agency’s approval of Louisiana’s do-nothing plan allows visibility pollution to persist in protected areas not only in Louisiana but in Arkansas at Caney Creek and the Upper Buffalo Wilderness Areas. Dolet Hills also impacts the Mingo National Wildlife Refuge and Hercules-Glade Wilderness Area in Missouri, the Breton National Wildlife Refuge in Louisiana, and the Wichita Mountains National Wildlife Refuge in Oklahoma.

The sulfur dioxide and particulate matter pollution from Louisiana coal plants does more than ruin the vistas at treasured places: it also contributes to already unsafe air for those with respiratory illnesses, especially children and the elderly with asthma in communities across Louisiana and neighboring states. It has also been associated with increased mortality rates.

“The same coal pollution that is affecting the air in our national parks is also making people sick. A strong haze rule will provide the added crucial benefit of protecting public health as well,” said Sunni Patterson, Internationally Acclaimed Poet and Co-Founder of Breath is Lyfe.  

“America’s national parks are some of the most beloved places on earth and provide once in a lifetime experiences, but nearly every single one of our more than 400 national parks, including Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve in Louisiana and Buffalo National River in Arkansas, are being plagued by air pollution,” said Stephanie Kodish, Clean Air Program Director for the National Parks Conservation Association. “Air pollution is also posing a health risk to some of the 330 million people who visit our parks each year, as well as the communities who surround them. Louisiana’s regional haze plan does nothing to protect our parks and communities. We are asking the court to reject the plan so polluting sources including Entergy’s Nelson coal plant will be required to curb emissions to help restore clean air to the region’s irreplaceable natural and cultural resources.”

“EPA’s blatantly unlawful approval of Louisiana’s do-nothing haze plan is just another example of the Trump Administration’s pattern of bowing to polluting industry and industry-friendly states,” said Cherelle Blazer, Campaign Representative of the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign for Louisiana.“Although Administrator Wheeler has turned its back on the health of Americans and the goal of clearing hazy skies, Sierra Club, National Parks Conservation Association, and Earthjustice will not. And we hope the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals will force EPA to do what the Clean Air Act requires.”

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