The Department of the Interior (DOI) decided Thursday that they would support a petition from the National Parks Conservation Association, the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, Friends of the Boundary Waters Wilderness, and Voyageurs National Park Association. The groups requested that DOI certify to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency that pollution from the Xcel coal-fired power plant in Sherburne County, Minnesota contributes to haze and reduced visibility at Voyageurs and Isle Royale National Parks, based on air pollution models and observations. The certification from DOI could result in stricter air pollution control requirements for the plant. (For more information, see our Sept. 2009 news release here.
Tomorrow, October 27, these groups, joined by the Superintendent of Voyageurs National Park and the Forest Supervisor for the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, will also ask the Citizen Board of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency to place stronger measures in the Haze State Implementation Plan to improve visibility. For more information on the meeting, click here.
STATEMENT by Lynn McClure, Midwest Regional Director, NPCA:
"This is an important victory for national parks and a critical first step to improving air quality throughout the northern Midwest. This certification demonstrates the damaging impact this coal plant is having on two treasured national parks, and sends a clear signal that the Department of the Interior will take steps to protect visibility and visitor experiences at Voyageurs and Isle Royale National Parks.”
STATEMENT by Cory MacNulty, Executive Director, Voyageurs National Park Association:
"We hope this certification from the Department of the Interior will result in better pollution control requirements for the Xcel plant, and will have a positive impact on the EPA’s regional haze implementation plan. Our region’s national parks and wilderness areas need the best possible protection so that these beautiful wild and scenic places will once again have clean air."
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