Arkansas filed a lawsuit Thursday challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to reject its plan to comply with federal rules that supposedly ensure that the state’s coal-fired power plants and industrial sites don’t pollute the air in other states.
The state filed a petition with the US Court of Appeals for the 8th Circuit seeking EPA’s disapproval of the state’s plan to meet “good neighbor” obligations under the Clean Air Act. The EPA rejected the plans for Arkansas and 18 other states this week.
Arkansas Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, a Republican, said the agency is not allowing her state to review its plan, which was submitted in 2019.
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“Critical Arkansas industries, and more importantly Arkansas workers and their families, will be affected by this out-of-control federal overreach,” Sanders said at a news conference with Attorney General Tim Griffin announcing the lawsuit. .
Arkansas has filed a lawsuit against the EPA’s decision to reject the state’s plan to prevent air pollution.
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A 2015 EPA rule prevents states from increasing ozone pollution outside of their limits. Last year, the agency announced its plan to limit pollution downwind from power plants. In cases where a state has not submitted a “good neighbor” proposal, or in cases where the EPA rejects it, the federal plan would go into effect to protect downwind states.
The EPA did not immediately comment on the lawsuit when contacted by The Associated Press. The agency has said its plan will help states meet air quality standards and improve health in smog-affected communities.
Griffin said the EPA rejected Arkansas’ proposal based on the impact its emissions would have on the Dallas-Fort Worth and Houston metropolitan areas, which Griffin said was a different standard than the one the state was originally told would apply to it. .
