On September 2nd, PacifiCorp and the State of Utah both filed suits against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to stop a plan that would clean up the air and protect views in the Grand Canyon, Arches, Canyonlands, Mesa Verde and other western parks.
Utah’s regional haze rule requires coal plants in Utah, owned by PacifiCorp and operated by Rocky Mountain Power, to install commonly-used pollution controls in order to cut haze pollution that is damaging views – and air quality- in regional national parks. Local outdoor recreation business owners stood up to the utility, arguing that its coal pollution obscures the very vistas that attract customers to the region. But in complete disregard of the united voices of their customers calling for Rocky Mountain Power to stand down, the utility today sued EPA to protect its pollution-spewing coal plants..
This suit came at the start of Labor Day weekend as the National Park Service expected record crowds at national parks. Meanwhile, the State of Utah continues to run and advertise a campaign promoting what it calls the Mighty Five— Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef and Zion. All five of these parks are covered under the EPA’s clean air plan that the state is trying to overturn.
“Tens of Thousands of Utahns, hundreds of businesses, and countless others from across our country have united to say that our iconic national parks deserve nothing less than strong and fair protection from coal pollution. The state’s decision to challenge the EPA’s plan to reduce haze pollution is out-of-touch with the needs and values of Utah residents, who want clean, healthy air in their national parks. It’s unfair to Utahns across our state and families and businesses throughout the region to delay the inevitable and hold up critical clean air safeguards for parks like the Grand Canyon, Arches and Zion. This lawsuit guarantees that coal pollution will damage these sacred places for what could be years. It is unfortunate that the State of Utah is not seizing the opportunity to reduce residents risks from an increasingly expensive and uncertain coal industry and instead tap into the bountiful clean energy resources available in Utah.”
Amy Hojnowski, Campaign Representative with the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal campaign
“As part-owner of a 50-year-old family operated whitewater rafting and bike company, I intimately understand profit motives. We are motivated to foster folks’ enjoyment of both treasured national parks and monuments as well as equally incredible but unprotected public lands. Our profit motive relies on vibrant ecosystems and the breathtaking vista of a clear sky. Rocky Mountain Power seeks to profit at the expense of those vistas, by continuing to pollute at their dirty coal-fired power plants.”
— Lauren Wood, owner of Holiday River Expeditions and environmental advocate
“The benefits of improved visibility and air quality that will be realized by EPA’s decision to implement strong safeguards under the Regional Haze Rule to protect national parks across the Southwest from air pollution generated by coal burning at two of Rocky Mountain Power’s Hunter and Huntington power plants in central Utah are key to providing communities and park visitors with healthier air and greater opportunities to experience the full expanse of the dramatic vistas for which these national treasures are celebrated.”
— Cory MacNulty, Utah Senior Program Manager for National Parks Conservation Association
“Utah’s parks are a national treasure. Rocky Mountain Power has a golden opportunity to enhance those parks by reducing its coal-plant pollution that dirties the air and mars the scenic vistas that draws visitors to Arches, Canyonlands, Zion, and the many other spectacular national parks in the region. We will make sure this opportunity isn’t squandered and defend EPA’s decision to require Rocky Mountain Power to control its pollution.
— Jenny Harbine, Earthjustice attorney
Background:
Under the federal Clean Air Act’s “Regional Haze Rule,” federal and state agencies are required to work together to cut human-caused air pollution in national parks and wilderness areas until the air is restored to its natural state. Utah is among the last states in the country to have a final plan in place to cut harmful emissions from power plants that pollute the air we breathe and obscure national park vistas. In June EPA adopted a plan that calls for a 76 percent reduction in haze-causing and health-harming nitrogen oxide pollution from four units at the Hunter and Huntington facilities. These plants will now be required to reduce emissions using industry-standard technology called selective catalytic reduction that is in place at more than 250 similar facilities across the country to limit nitrogen oxide pollution. The Hunter and Huntington plants are responsible for nearly 40 percent of all nitrogen oxide emissions from Utah’s electric sector, according to EPA emissions data. Monitoring studies have also shown visibility at Arches and Canyonlands national parks is diminished by human-caused haze 83 percent of the time relative to the annual average level of natural haze.
In states like New Mexico and Colorado, utilities, including PacifiCorp, have worked with other interests to find cost-effective alternatives that fulfill our joint responsibility to clean up our national parks while reducing the cost of clean up. With appropriate leadership, PacifiCorp can protect our parks and manage costs. If it fails to lead, the utility will bear responsibility for delaying the protection of some of America’s most sacred landscapes and missing the opportunity to develop affordable clean energy.
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