EPA Boosts EJ In Air Permits, But Declines To Revoke State Deference Policy

EPA is aiming to boost consideration of environmental justice (EJ) concerns in state and federal air permits, as shown in recent decisions by Administrator Michael Regan faulting state permits for facilities located in EJ communities, but Regan has stopped short of “disavowing” a Trump-era policy of deference to states on permit terms. Regan’s string of recent full or partial permit objections to Title V air operating permits is a departure from the Trump EPA, which rarely objected to permits, but...