The U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced recently that it will disapprove of changes made by the State of Wyoming to its regional haze State Implementation Plan (SIP).
The EPA announced its intent on its website Jan. 12. The agency states Wyoming's revised SIP would weaken requirements, in place since 2014, to install pollution-control systems at the Jim Bridger Power Plant in Sweetwater County beginning this year. The State determined in 2011 that, under the Clean Air Act, Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) pollution control systems should be installed at Units 1 and 2 at the Jim Bridger plant in order to improve visibility at local wilderness areas.
"Emissions from the Jim Bridger power plant affect visibility in western National Parks and Wilderness Areas protected as 'Class I Areas' under the Clean Air Act," EPA states in the announcement. The Clean Air Act requires states to create and enforce plans to reduce haze and emissions from pollution creators, including power plants, in Class I areas.
Class I areas affected by pollution emitted by the Jim Bridger plant include Grand Teton National Park, Rocky Mountain National Park, Yellowstone National Park, the Bridger Wilderness Area, the Fitzpatrick Wilderness Area, the Flat Tops Wilderness Area, the Washakie Wilderness Area, the Rawah Wilderness Area, and the Teton Wilderness Area, according to the EPA.
According to the EPA, the agency received Wyoming's revised SIP in May 2020. Throughout its evaluation process, the agency relayed to Wyoming its concerns and suggestions for the revisions but didn't receive cooperation from the State, the EPA reports.
“After thorough review and extensive efforts to work with the State, EPA is proposing to determine that Wyoming’s plan to remove and weaken current pollution control requirements in place for the Jim Bridger plant is inconsistent with the Clean Air Act,” KC Becker, EPA Regional Administrator, said in the announcement.
The EPA reports that despite Wyoming's requirement for the installation of the SCR units, the plant's operator PacifiCorp hasn't done so. The company has stated its intention to convert the Jim Bridger plant to natural gas from coal by 2024; however, EPA determined the revised SIP does not validate reversing the 2011 decision because the revision doesn't include PacifiCorp's conversion plans.
If finalized, EPA's proposed disapproval of Wyoming's revised SIP will require PacifiCorp to install the SCR equipment per the 2014 regional haze plan, according to the announcement, "absent an approvable plan revision from the State." The agency also states it is aware of PacifiCorp's conversion plans for the plant, and "has been and remains open to finalizing a new plan, consistent with the Clean Air Act, that addresses current circumstances while protecting Wyoming’s environment, its workers, and its communities," it states in the announcement.
A public-comment period on the EPA's proposed disapproval is open; details are available in the announcement on the EPA website.
“While we look forward to public comment and continued opportunities for engagement," Becker said, "our evaluation of information provided to date indicates the State’s revision to its 2014 regional haze plan is a step backward for visibility in our parks, wilderness areas, and communities.”
