HARRISBURG, PA (November 22, 2023) On November 21, Governor Shapiro announced his decision to appeal the November 1 Commonwealth Court decision that declared the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) to be unconstitutional. 

RGGI is a program established in 2005 that requires regulated power plants to acquire allowances for the carbon emissions they produce. Within the currently-participating states, RGGI reduces emissions from fossil fuel power plants and funds climate change initiatives with the collected fees. Proceeds from the program in Pennsylvania would go to the state’s Clean Air Fund, which can then be put towards efforts that reduce air pollution. By not implementing RGGI, Pennsylvania has already missed out on over $1 billion dollars in RGGI proceeds since January 2022 that would have gone towards air pollution reduction programs. 

Executive Director and Chief Counsel, Joseph Otis Minott, Esq. issued the following statement:

“As the nation’s fourth largest emitter of carbon dioxide, Pennsylvania needs RGGI, an effective cap-and-invest program, to advance a commonsense energy plan that cuts climate pollution and ensures an equitable energy transition and the jobs that come with it. The Governor’s appeal gives us a crucial chance to participate in this program and secure a clean energy economy for Pennsylvania. The Governor’s diverse RGGI stakeholder group reached the consensus that such a cap and trade program for the power sector would be critical for generating the funds needed to support the state’s clean energy transition. RGGI is the clear choice for meeting the working group’s goals and Governor Shapiro’s criteria of supporting climate action, clean energy job creation, public health protection, and energy affordability.”

HARRISBURG, PA (November 2, 2023) –  In 2020, the recommendations of Pennsylvania’s 43rd Statewide Investigating Grand Jury released a report on the systemic problems of the unconventional oil and gas industry. The Grand Jury made a series of reasonable and easy-to-implement recommendations that would better protect the health, welfare and quality of life of Pennsylvanian residents. Despite the recommendations of the Grand Jury, the Pennsylvania Legislature has done little to implement the Grand Jury recommendations.

Today, Governor Shapiro is moving forward in implementing the Grand Jury Recommendations by instructing Pennsylvania’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to draft regulations to protect Pennsylvania residents and the environment from the chronic pollution emitted by the gas industry.. In today’s press event with CNX Resources, the Governor will highlight new public health and environmental protections from the gas industry. Residents throughout Pennsylvania have been demanding protections from gas infrastructure for years while the gas industry has opposed them. 

The Governor has instructed the DEP to adopt regulations that will require the gas industry to disclose all the chemicals used in drilling, set stronger standards for dealing with drilling waste and assure the safety of gathering pipelines. Governor Shapiro also committed to improved standards to reduce climate-changing methane emissions from the gas industry which is a major contributor to climate change.

In Response, Joseph Otis Minott, Esq., Clean Air Council Executive Director and Chief Counsel, released the following statement:

“Clean Air Council strongly supports Governor Shapiro’s decision to move forward in implementing the commonsense public health and environmental standards recommended by the 2020 Grand Jury to better protect Pennsylvania residents from oil and gas operations. For far too long, the gas industry and too many elected leaders have shown a disregard for the harm the industry is causing to residents’ health and the environment. It is past time that our leaders adopt protections from this industry.”

“We applaud Governor Shapiro’s leadership in recognizing the need to further reduce methane pollution from the gas industry, and look forward to supporting him and the DEP in tailoring the forthcoming federal rules to ensure they address the concerns of Pennsylvania residents affected by the gas industry.”

The Council encourages the Governor to additionally propose regulations to require setbacks that better protect residents and our natural resources from harmful gas infrastructure. DEP has the legal authority, scientific evidence, and public support needed right now to adopt setback distances that prevent this infrastructure from being built too close to our homes, schools, hospitals, streams, and wetlands. 

To demonstrate how the industry needs to do more, the Governor announced a partnership with the gas company CNX Resources, which agreed to disclose its chemical use and better monitor its emissions, something that residents in areas affected by fracking have been demanding for years.

Car centric road design requires a tremendous amount of parking, but what if this public space was used for something else? Each year in cities across the world, people come together to reimagine street parking into safe and inviting pedestrian spaces. The Council and its pedestrian advocacy group Feet First Philly are long time participants in this international celebration, and this year the Council’s team turned a parking space on the 1800 block of Chestnut St. into a temporary parklet where people walking by could try their hand at redesigning a city street with an interactive game. Check out these photos from our parklet in Center City, Philadelphia.

Learn how you can get a permanent parklet in your Philly neighborhood with this Feet First Philly Infographic, or contact Titania Markland, Transportation Outreach Coordinator to learn more about parklets and PARK(ing) Day at tmarkland@cleanair.org.

Reductions in cross-state smog-forming emissions will go forward

Environmental and health groups celebrated an important step toward clean air after a federal appeals court today denied the requests of states and industry groups to block the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) “Good Neighbor Rule.” The rule, designed to address cross-state air pollution and the adverse health effects of ozone pollution, also called smog, will improve public health and air quality.

The Good Neighbor Rule, a vital measure aimed at reducing cross-state air pollution, requires coal-burning power plants and other high-polluting industrial sources to decrease emissions that contribute to smog. Polluters in upwind states like Indiana and Ohio that had previously avoided implementing pollution controls are slated to reduce their contributions to hazardous smog levels in downwind states like Connecticut and Wisconsin.

“The court’s refusal to block this protective air rule serves as a critical step towards holding upwind polluters accountable for their contribution to cross-state smog,” said the coalition of health and environmental groups defending the rule. “We remain committed to fighting for cleaner air and a healthier future, ensuring that polluters are held responsible for jeopardizing air quality.”

The federal appeals court’s decision to reject the stay request is a triumph for communities striving to combat the health risks posed by air pollution. EPA estimates that the Good Neighbor Rule, when fully implemented, will prevent more than a million asthma attacks annually and at least a thousand premature deaths. This rule will also improve the health of forests and waterbodies harmed by ozone and its precursor pollutants.

“This court decision marks a crucial step in our ongoing battle to hold upwind polluters accountable for exacerbating cross-state smog pollution,” said Earthjustice Attorney Kathleen Riley. “With more than 127 million people residing in regions plagued by harmful ozone levels, the Good Neighbor Rule protects public health. Earthjustice will keep fighting to ensure that this and national air quality rules truly protect public health.”

The U.S. Court of Appeals decision for the D.C. Circuit is notable after other courts blocked a related rule from going forward in certain states. With support from the coalition of environmental and health organizations, EPA has consistently argued that all challenges to these national protections should be heard in the D.C. Circuit, the court with experience reviewing prior Good Neighbor rules.

Smog, a harmful form of air pollution generated by vehicles, factories, and power plants, leads to asthma attacks, heart and lung diseases, and premature deaths nationwide.

The Good Neighbor Rule is just one necessary step to protect people from the adverse health impacts of air pollution. Recent studies show that the national standards for particulate matter—soot—and smog- are far too weak to protect people from premature death, lung cancer, reproductive harm, and cardiovascular disease. This year, the EPA proposed a new standard for soot, but it’s not nearly as strong as scientists and doctors say it needs to be. Stronger soot and smog regulations would save tens of thousands of lives.

A coalition of environmental and health groups has defended the Good Neighbor Rule in court. The coalition includes the Environmental Defense Fund; Citizens for Pennsylvania’s Future, Clean Air Council, and Clean Wisconsin represented by the Clean Air Task Force; and Air Alliance Houston, Appalachian Mountain Club, Center for Biological Diversity, Chesapeake Bay Foundation, Downwinders at Risk, Louisiana Environmental Action Network, Sierra Club, Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, and Utah Physicians for a Healthy Environment, represented by Earthjustice.

Pennsylvania has the fourth-highest energy related emissions in the country with coal and gas-fired power plants being the largest individual industrial climate polluters in the state. Producing electricity accounts for more than a fourth of Pennsylvania’s greenhouse gas emissions. For many years, Clean Air Council has been a major player in forcing power plants to reduce their emissions and suing to prevent the building of new fossil fuel plants. Not an easy thing to do in a state like Pennsylvania which has strong political support for coal and fracked gas.  

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently proposed new national carbon emission  standards for coal and gas-fired power plants. This new proposed rule would eliminate 617 million metric tons of total carbon dioxide (CO2) through 2042, equivalent to reducing the annual emissions of nearly half of all passenger vehicles in the United States. It is estimated it would prevent about 1,300 premature deaths, prevent more than 300,000 cases of asthma attacks, and prevent more than 800 hospital and emergency room visits each year. 

The proposed new rule is a historic step in limiting the carbon emissions that fuel climate change as well as reducing other harmful chemicals emitted along with carbon dioxide. However, in order to achieve the greenhouse gas reductions needed to meet our climate goals and avoid the most catastrophic effects of the climate crisis, EPA must strengthen the proposed rule.

The rule’s suggested  limits for gas-fired plants is based on the low emissions produced by using hydrogen or carbon capture and sequestration. There are many ways to produce hydrogen, including using natural gas which is very energy intensive. EPA needs to specify that only hydrogen produced with 100% renewable energy, known as green hydrogen, should be used. Hydrogen produced using natural gas will create more greenhouse gas pollution when we need to be reducing it.

EPA also needs to create strict rules around the transport and storage of captured CO2 to ensure these emissions do not leak into the atmosphere. Safe, secure, and permanent underground carbon storage has yet to be proven at commercial scale, so EPA must require that companies that generate carbon share the responsibility for ensuring these sequestered emissions don’t end up leaking into the atmosphere, and the long-term liability for any harms from future leakage. 

While the rule rightly requires strong pollution standards at power plants that operate at a high amount of their full capacity, it should also include power plants that operate at less than full capacity, commonly referred to as “peaker plants.” These plants only operate during periods of high electricity demand, use highly polluting fuels like oil, and many are sited in Environmental Justice (EJ) areas that already struggle with air quality and environmental injustice. 

The proposed rule has huge implications for Pennsylvania’s energy emissions. Comments are open until August 8th. The Council sent an action alert to encourage members to comment on the rule that provides talking points and we encourage you to use our digital platform to submit your comments and share the link with your friends. As part of the comment period, the Council also testified at an EPA public hearing about the rules.This is why we need you to submit a comment to the EPA about the proposed rule

To learn more about EPA’s proposed rule, contact Advocacy Coordinator Susan Volz at svolz@cleanair.org

Philadelphia, PA (May 11, 2023)

This morning, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a proposal for: (1) updated New Source Performance Standards (NSPS) to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution from new, modified, and reconstructed fossil fuel-fired power plants; and (2) Emissions Guidelines to reduce GHG pollution from certain existing fossil-fired power plants nationwide. The EPA first set carbon rules for existing power plants in the 2015 “Clean Power Plan” under the Obama administration, but those rules never took effect because the U.S. Supreme Court first stayed them, then the Trump administration repealed them. Last year, the Supreme Court issued an opinion that offered guidance to EPA on the scope of its authority. EPA is unequivocally required by the Clean Air Act to establish limits on carbon dioxide from new and existing fossil power plants.

In terms of climate pollution, Pennsylvania’s power sector is the third-dirtiest in the country. The most recent emissions data shows that carbon pollution from Pennsylvania power plants is on the rise and roughly two-thirds of in-state electricity is still generated by fossil fuels. Meanwhile, Pennsylvanians face direct injury from climate change, including lower air quality, increased flood damage, agricultural losses, and higher rates of vector-borne illnesses like Lyme disease.

Joseph Otis Minott, Esq., Executive Director and Chief Counsel of Clean Air Council, issued the following statement:

“Binding federal requirements to reduce carbon pollution from fossil fuel power plants are long overdue. EPA’s proposal is absolutely critical to combating the climate crisis and protecting the air quality and health of residents across the country. When paired with recent federal climate legislation, these rules will help our country achieve our climate commitments and preserve the chance to avoid the most catastrophic impacts of climate change. I applaud EPA for taking this important action and urge the agency to strengthen this proposal and finalize these rules without delay. It is worth noting that Pennsylvania’s participation in the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) will result in significant progress towards achieving EPA’s proposed performance standards for existing sources, and we look forward to working with state officials and stakeholders to continue transitioning Pennsylvania to a clean, carbon-free future.”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Alex Bomstein, Legal Director, Clean Air Council, abomstein@cleanair.org

Jessica O’Neill, Senior Attorney, Citizens for Pennsylvania’s Future, oneill@pennfuture.org; Leigh Martinez, Director of Communications, Citizens for Pennsylvania’s Future, martinez@pennfuture.org

Robert Ukeiley, Senior Attorney, Center for Biological Diversity, 720-496-8568, rukeiley@biologicaldiversity.org 

Renovo Energy Center Will Not Be Built

After many years of community opposition and nearly two years of litigation, the residents of Renovo can breathe easier.

Today, the Bechtel Corporation announced that it is withdrawing its plan to develop a fracked gas-fired power plant at the former rail yard in Renovo Borough, Clinton County. 

In 2021, Clean Air Council, Citizens for Pennsylvania’s Future (PennFuture), and the Center for Biological Diversity lodged their appeal of the DEP air quality permit for the Renovo Energy Center, which would have been built just feet away from the homes and businesses of the environmental justice community of Renovo, in North Central Pennsylvania. The groups objected to the permit because it allows illegal levels of air pollution, ignored environmental justice concerns and the health costs to society in issuing the permit, and for several other deficiencies spelled out in the Notice of Appeal

In August 2022, the environmental groups won  some of their challenges to the permit before the Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board. The Board granted partial summary judgment on the issues of the illegal sulfur dioxide and volatile organic compounds limits in the permits. That means that the environmental groups proved, without needing a trial, that DEP broke the law when it allowed the power plant to emit such high pollution levels. High levels of sulfur dioxide can cause health problems, including hurting lung function, causing wheezing and shortness of breath. Volatile organic compound pollution may irritate people’s eyes, nose, and throat, increase cancer risk, and damage the central nervous system. The Board’s opinion is here

Now, the developers behind the facility have announced that they have chosen to end their attempts to build this fracked gas plant.

“Bechtel’s decision to cancel this dangerous plant is a crucial win for the health, welfare and safety of the residents of Renovo, who have been peddled lies about this project’s purported benefits and illegally cut out of the permitting process,” said Joseph Otis Minott, Executive Director and Chief Counsel of Clean Air Council. “Pennsylvania’s economic growth depends on a clean energy future and will not be achieved by pumping millions of tons of air pollution every year right into the heart of communities like Renovo.”

“Our lawsuit was about protecting Pennsylvania and this environmental justice community from the additional pollution burdens that this plant would have imposed,” said Jessica O’Neill, Senior Attorney at PennFuture. “It is a win for Renovo and for all Pennsylvanians when we realize that the fracked gas industry doesn’t make sense – from an economic, energy, or environmental health perspective. We will continue to push back against facilities and industries that threaten the health of our communities, our workers, and the sustainable energy future that Pennsylvanians want and that our children deserve.” 

“The cancellation of this proposed fracked gas burning power plant helps move us forward to a future powered by wind and solar power,”  said Robert Ukeiley, an environmental health lawyer at the Center for Biological Diversity. “Every step away from fossil fuels is a step toward averting both climate disaster and the biodiversity crisis.”

“As a great-grandparent, I’m grateful that this power plant didn’t come to fruition because we are now able to protect what is most important – the health of our children,” said Sue Cannon, co-founder of Renovo Residents for a Healthy Environment. “I opposed the power plant  because I was thinking about the children in this community, especially my great-grandchild, and what the pollution would do to their health. After all, children are our most precious assets.”

“This decision gives us great hope for the future of Renovo’s health, quality of life, and future prosperity,” said Maureen Ruhl, co-founder of Renovo Residents for a Healthy Environment. “We look forward to building Renovo’s future with a vision based on tourism, our natural resources, recreation, and our railroad history – all of which we hold dear.” 

###

Clean Air Council is a member-supported, non-profit environmental organization dedicated to protecting everyone’s right to a healthy environment. The Council has offices in Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, and Wilmington, and works through public education, community advocacy, and government oversight to ensure enforcement of environmental laws. For more information, please visit www.cleanair.org.

PennFuture is leading the transition to a clean energy economy in Pennsylvania and beyond. We are protecting our air, water and land, and empowering citizens to build sustainable communities for future generations. Visit www.pennfuture.org.

The Center for Biological Diversity is a national, nonprofit conservation organization with more than 1.7 million members and online activists dedicated to the protection of endangered species and wild places.

Compressor Station May Go Forward Court Rejects Adelphia’s Attempt for a “Do-Over” in Federal Court After Losing at Commonwealth Court

(WEST ROCKHILL TOWNSHIP, BUCKS COUNTY – March 14, 2023) Notch another win
for Citizens in the long-running saga of the Adelphia Gateway Quakertown Compressor Station,
a significant industrial pollution source on a small property amidst houses and farms in this rural
community. The federal Third Circuit Court of Appeals, one step below the U.S. Supreme
Court, ruled today that Adelphia Gateway was not entitled to a different outcome in Federal
Court after receiving an adverse judgment in the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania in Cole
et al v. Department of Environmental Protection in 2021.


That case resolved in the affirmative the question of whether state permits issued for operations
which are part of interstate natural gas pipelines can be appealed at the Pennsylvania
Environmental Hearing Board (EHB). Neighbors have been seeking to present their case to the
Board since 2019 that the natural gas compressor station’s technologies and processes are
insufficiently protective of the environment and public health.


Neighbors Clifford Cole, Pamela West, Brian Weirback, Kathy Weirback, Todd Shelly, and
Christine Shelly oppose the DEP permit, an air quality Plan Approval, which would allow
Adelphia to emit hundreds of tons of air pollution into the community. The neighbors also
object to the droning industrial noise the station projects onto their quiet and peaceful properties.
Adelphia Gateway has maintained from the outset that the federal Natural Gas Act allows only
the federal Circuit Courts of Appeals to hear a challenge to a state permit issued to an interstate
natural gas pipeline-related pollution source. In 2021, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court
rejected that argument, stating that the EHB could hear the Neighbors’ appeal. In 2022, the
Federal District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania also rejected Adelphia’s
Complaint and request for an Injunction to prevent the Commonwealth Court’s ruling allowing
the EHB case to proceed. Adelphia appealed that decision to the Third Circuit, resulting in
today’s outcome.


The Third Circuit’s decision recognized the state court’s authority to rule on a question involving
interpretation of federal law (whether the Natural Gas Act preempts a state administrative
proceeding), accords respect to the state court decision, and further held that federal court could
not subsequently take up and rule on the same question involving the same parties.

As the Court stated: “When a party has its day in state court and loses, it is not permitted a do-
over in federal court. Were it otherwise, state court decisions would lack finality, litigation expenses would balloon, and lower federal courts would sit as quasi courts of appeals over state
courts.” Opinion, p. 16.


This outcome is particularly noteworthy given that the Third Circuit is the very court the Natural
Gas Act would ostensibly place sole jurisdiction for Court appeals of state permits. It has been
further established now that this preemption of review does not apply to state administrative
proceedings, such as those before the EHB. The case is of considerable legal interest because of
the broad implications for the application of state law in Pennsylvania, and potentially
neighboring states as well, in the context of a critical environmental struggle–the ongoing
development of Marcellus Shale natural gas fields in Northeast and Southwest portions of the
state and the pipeline networks necessary to support that exploitation.


“The Third Circuit today made it clear—appeals to the EHB in PA are not preempted by the
federal Natural Gas Act. This is a major win for the people of Pennsylvania resisting the
intrusion of gas industry polluters in their communities,” said Michael D. Fiorentino, attorney
for the Neighbors. “Citizens contending with natural gas pipeline facilities setting up in their
communities need the option for a robust, fact-finding appeal of DEP permits that are available
only before the Environmental Hearing Board.”

“That a few citizens could continue to win in state and federal Courts against the massive gas
industry is astounding,” said Pamela West, one of the neighbor-parties to the appeals. “We will
continue to strive to protect our families, the nature we are part of, our homes, and the quality of
our lives.”

“We shouldn’t give up the fight against big corporations when it comes to our family’s health,
safety and the future of our environment. If we don’t stand up, who will? We will continue to do
what we can to make a difference.” ~Brian and Kathy Weirback, neighbor-parties to the
appeals.

In the near future, it is expected that the PA Supreme Court, at which Adelpia had lodged yet
another appeal, will determine whether to also uphold the Commonwealth Court decision and
allow the EHB to re-establish a procedural timeline for the Neighbors’ challenge to the air
quality plan approval.


Today’s decision can be found on the Third Circuit docket for Adelphia Gateway, LLC v.
Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board, et al, No. 21-3356.

pipeline construction

HARRISBURG, PA (February 22, 2023) – Today, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court handed down a major decision in two suits where the public sought reimbursement for legal costs in environmental cases: the Clean Air Council, the Delaware Riverkeeper Network, and Mountain Watershed Association v. DEP and Sunoco Pipeline and Gerhart v. DEP and Sunoco Pipeline cases.

The Supreme Court’s decision reversed a lower court ruling that had put up a major barrier to reimbursement of legal costs for environmental lawsuits brought by non-profits and residents.  Now, members of the public, who are harmed by permits allowing industrial activities, and who successfully appeal those permits, are more easily able to get reimbursement of their legal costs. The reimbursement can come not only from the state, who issued the permit, but from the company holding the permits, and profiting from the permitted activity. Legal experts, fees, and other costs necessary for these cases can easily reach tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars, and the cases can go on for years or even decades, making appeals like this out of reach for most absent the ability to recoup costs. 

The decision is a victory for the environmental organizations, who had sought but been denied reimbursement for their legal costs from Sunoco Pipeline, the builder of the controversial Mariner East pipelines. It is also a victory for the Gerhart family, landowners along the pipeline route who stood up to the company and also had success at the Pennsylvania Environmental Hearing Board.

“Today’s ruling from the Pennsylvania Supreme Court is a huge win for the public,” said Joseph Minott, Executive Director and Chief Counsel of Clean Air Council. “Too often, when members of the public have been harmed by big polluters, they are unable to afford legal support. Today’s ruling makes it easier for the public to be compensated for their legal costs when their lawsuits are successful. This opens the door for the public to finally have their day in court and for justice to be restored.”  

Melissa Marshall, Community Advocate with the Mountain Watershed Association stated, “We are pleased with the decision for two reasons. Not only does it remedy a bad standard, but it also clarifies, for the first time, that it is the permittees – often exploitative industries, such as mining and fracking — and not just the taxpayers, who should bear the financial burden when environmental groups bring protective lawsuits.” 

“Today’s decision appropriately recognizes the significant role that citizen objectors play in the vindication of environmental rights and the General Assembly’s laws protecting the public natural resources. This ruling helps support legal action against bad permitting decisions, and holds accountable the parties who stand to benefit financially from those decisions,” said Kacy Manahan, Senior Attorney for the Delaware Riverkeeper Network.

“Today’s opinion shows that Pennsylvanians who enforce the Clean Streams Law have a voice and that applicants who submit faulty permit applications to DEP can be held responsible for their sloppy or incompetent work,” said Rich Raiders, attorney for Stephen and Ellen Gerhart, Huntingdon County landowners who won a fee award from DEP, but not Sunoco, in a case decided with the Clean Air Council matter in today’s opinion. The Gerharts successfully challenged a wetlands determination on their Huntingdon County property where Sunoco was required to remediate a parcel of forested wetland disturbed during construction.

In March of 2022, Clean Air Council, Mountain Watershed Association, and the Delaware Riverkeeper Network petitioned the Pennsylvania Supreme Court to overturn that lower court decision, which made it nearly impossible for residents or advocacy organizations to be compensated for their legal expenses from the permit holder when appealing a DEP permit. The Commonwealth Court decision affirmed the Environmental Hearing Board’s decision that denied the groups’ request for Energy Transfer (Sunoco Pipeline’s parent) to compensate parties for their legal fees stemming from an appeal of Sunoco’s Mariner East 2 pipeline permits.

Shell Cracker Plant

Pittsburgh, Pa. – Today, the Environmental Integrity Project and Clean Air Council filed a notice of intent to sue a petrochemical plant in Beaver County, about 30 miles west of Pittsburgh, for repeated violations of air pollution limits. 

The action against Shell Chemical Appalachia’s plant, located in Potter Township, is for illegal emissions of volatile organic compounds (or VOCs), which contribute to smog and can cause nausea, nerve damage, and other health problems, as well as nitrogen oxides, which can trigger asthma attacks and respiratory illness. 

Under the federal Clean Air Act, plaintiffs must send notices of intent to sue at least 60 days before filing a complaint in federal court. 

“Shell has blown through permit limits in the first few months of operation, putting nearby communities in harm’s way,” said Sarah Kula, Attorney for the Environmental Integrity Project. “Shell must be held accountable under the law and take appropriate steps to prevent illegal pollution going forward.” 

“Shell’s exceedances are not just numbers in a book, they are tons of pollution that can harm and even kill people,” said Joseph Minott, Clean Air Council Executive Director and Chief Counsel. “We can’t allow these pollution events to become the cost of doing business. There must be strict penalties to deter this clear violation of the laws.” 

In September 2022, the plant, called Shell Polymers Monaca, emitted 512 tons of VOCs, nearly reaching the 12-month permitted limit of its approved VOC emissions (516.2 tons of VOCs in any consecutive 12-month period) over the course of a single month, and all but guaranteeing ongoing VOC permit violations deep into 2023. 

Shell also emitted nitrogen oxide (NOx) and carbon monoxide (CO) from sources at the plant in the final months of 2022 at rates that exceed permit limits, according to the notice of intent to sue. 

In addition, public records show that Shell released soot and other “visible emissions” that violate limits in its permit and the Clean Air Act. The law prohibits visible emissions from flares and incinerators at Shell’s plant that exceed 0% opacity, including plumes of black smoke, for more than five minutes during any consecutive two-hour period. 

For a copy of the notice of intent to sue, click here. To view the accompanying exhibits, click here.

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