02.10.15

Hoeven Announces EPA Has Affirmed Approval for ND's Regional Haze Plan

WASHINGTON – Senator John Hoeven today announced that the Environmental Protection Agency has reaffirmed the agency’s approval of the North Dakota Department of Health’s State Implementation Plan for Regional Haze. Hoeven has been pushing the EPA since he was governor to accept the state’s plan rather than forcing a more costly one-size-fits-all federal plan.

“We have worked virtually for years to arrive at this decision, which is good news not only for the state’s coal industry and the people who work in it, but for North Dakota,” Hoeven said. “It means the industry can continue to provide affordable energy to our state and our region with good environmental stewardship.”

This rulemaking comes in response to a petition by Earth Justice challenging the state’s best available retrofit technology (BART) controls for NOx emissions at three coal-fired electric generating units. The EPA said it has considered all timely significant comments and determined that the state’s implementation plan for regional haze meets all necessary environmental requirements for good stewardship.

The three affected plants are Milton R. Young Station Units 1 and 2, and Leland Olds Station Unit 2.

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