The state of Wyoming and a coalition of environmental groups have each filed lawsuits against the Environmental Protection Agency over its regional haze plan.
The plan, which was finalized earlier this year, requires new emissions controls for coal-fired power plants. The goal is to reduce air pollution.
Gov. Matt Mead says a plan put forward by the state to deal with regional haze plan is sufficient, and that additional measures proposed by the EPA will cost companies too much. But Shannon Anderson with the Powder River Basin Resource Council says the EPA’s plan is too lax.
“EPA’s plan was a step forward from the state plan,” Anderson said. “But it just didn’t go far enough in terms of holding every single coal unit to that high standard that the Clean Air Act requires.”
Both suits were filed at the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.