Sierra Club Appeals EPA Approval of South Carolina’s Do-Nothing Pollution Plan
•February 11, 2026
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Why It Matters
A court ruling could force stricter emissions controls, protecting public health and the visual integrity of federal lands, while reinforcing enforcement of the Clean Air Act’s visibility standards.
Key Takeaways
- •Sierra Club challenges EPA's approval of South Carolina haze plan.
- •Plan exempts 19 facilities, harming visibility in 22 parks.
- •EPA and state ignored Clean Air Act regional haze requirements.
- •Litigation follows similar suit against West Virginia's plan.
- •Potential court ruling could tighten coal plant emission controls.
Pulse Analysis
The Regional Haze program, mandated by the Clean Air Act, obligates states to improve visibility in Class I federal lands such as national parks and wilderness areas. South Carolina’s recently approved plan, however, sidesteps this mandate by declaring that none of its coal‑fired power plants require additional controls, despite evidence that 19 industrial sources degrade sightlines in 22 protected sites, including the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge. By classifying the state’s emissions as “acceptable,” the EPA’s endorsement effectively freezes the status quo, leaving millions of visitors exposed to smog‑filled horizons.
Sierra Club’s appeal leverages a growing body of litigation that challenges EPA’s deference to state‑submitted haze plans. The organization previously contested West Virginia’s similar submission, arguing that the agency failed to enforce the quantitative visibility‑improvement benchmarks set in the 1999 Regional Haze Rule. If the court finds South Carolina’s plan non‑compliant, it could compel the EPA to issue a corrective Federal Implementation Plan, mandating retrofit technologies or fuel switches at the offending facilities. Such a ruling would reinforce the legal weight of the Clean Air Act’s visibility provisions.
Beyond courtroom drama, the case underscores the economic and health stakes of regional haze. Reduced visibility correlates with higher concentrations of fine particulate matter, which contributes to respiratory illnesses and lost productivity. For tourism‑dependent communities surrounding the affected parks, clearer skies translate into higher visitation and revenue. Moreover, a decisive judicial outcome could pressure other states with lax haze strategies to adopt more aggressive emission‑reduction pathways, accelerating the nation’s transition toward cleaner energy and preserving the aesthetic value of its most treasured landscapes.
Sierra Club Appeals EPA Approval of South Carolina’s Do-Nothing Pollution Plan
COLUMBIA, S.C. — The Sierra Club appealed the EPA’s approval of South Carolina’s do‑nothing plan to reduce air pollution at our country’s most wild and scenic national parks and wilderness areas. The Congressionally‑approved Regional Haze program of the Clean Air Act is intended to reduce air pollution, including from coal plants, that impair visibility at our most prized public lands.
South Carolina’s plan arbitrarily and unlawfully failed to follow the rules established in the Regional Haze Rule and Clean Air Act. Both South Carolina and EPA determined that no pollution controls were necessary at any of the state’s coal plants, including Santee Cooper’s Winyah, despite the plants’ contribution to visibility impairment. In total, 19 industrial facilities throughout the state are negatively affecting visibility at 22 different national parks or wilderness areas, including the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge. Additionally, 90 facilities around the country are negatively impacting Cape Romain.
Sierra Club filed this challenge following its appeal to EPA’s approval of West Virginia’s regional haze plan last year. The petition to appeal can be found here.
Statement from Paul Black, Sierra Club’s Senior Campaign Organizer in South Carolina:
“We are appealing because South Carolina and Trump’s EPA refuse to play by the rules that Congress established, and we look forward to our day in court. Unfortunately, the Trump Administration is handing out presidential pardons to pollute and regular people are stuck paying for it with our lungs. Public lands like Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge belong to all of us. They are federally protected for good reasons, and they should not be the dumping ground for the state’s largest polluters.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person’s right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.
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