Illinois attorney general to file suit against EPA on Wisconsin ozone rules, cites Foxconn

The Illinois attorney general said she intends to file a lawsuit against the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for sharply limiting areas that will come under stricter ozone regulations in Wisconsin.

Lisa Madigan, Illinois' Democratic attorney general, announced late Friday she will challenge the EPA's decision in federal appeals court, citing decisions for Wisconsin that she said will allow Foxconn Technology Group to avoid using the most stringent air pollution equipment in Racine County.

The announcement comes after the EPA on May 1 identified regions of the United States that fail to meet new, stricter ozone standards. EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt, a Republican, exempted much of southeastern Wisconsin, including Racine County, from the latest limits.

For years, Wisconsin officials, under Republican and Democratic administrations, have blamed Illinois for much of the problem with ozone, also known as smog, in the southeast region of the state, including Milwaukee.

Ozone is a summer air pollutant, and independent modeling has shown that on some days prevailing winds push pollutants north from Illinois along the Lake Michigan shoreline, creating ozone problems among lakeshore counties in Wisconsin.

Madigan, who has announced that she is not running for another term, said the EPA's decision to declare Racine County as in "attainment" of the new standard comes despite monitoring data showing the county is not meeting the limits. The action, she said, will have "negative impacts" on public health.

Foxconn is preparing to construct a $10 billion manufacturing plant in the Village of Mount Pleasant that could employ up to 13,000 employees.

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The EPA initially said Racine County would be part of a larger area, including metropolitan Milwaukee, that violated 2015 ozone regulations advanced under the administration of President Barack Obama. Areas that violate ozone limits come under stricter regulations.

In his announcement last week, Pruitt changed some of those designations around the country.

In Wisconsin, Waukesha, Washington and Racine counties were exempted, and only small parts of Milwaukee, Ozaukee, Sheboygan, Manitowoc, Door and Kenosha counties were declared to be violating the 2015 standard.

The EPA also exempted McHenry County in Illinois in the Greater Chicago area and two counties in northern Indiana. Madigan's office said the lawsuit would only target Wisconsin. It is expected to be filed after the regulations go into effect in about 60 days.

Eileen Boyce, a spokeswoman for Madigan, said in an email that "as far as the other counties: We are reviewing all of the possible issues."

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources officials have said they do not believe Foxconn would be subject to the stricter 2015 limits, even if it were in an area that violated the law.

That's because Racine County meets current ozone requirements, and that the company's air emissions permits were approved before the new law is expected to go into effect.

Environmental groups have criticized the EPA's decision — some groups have also said they are mulling lawsuits — and said it ignores the harm air pollution can have on residents of southeastern Wisconsin.

But business groups such as Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce have said that the EPA is recognizing that ozone pollution is affecting only small areas of the state along the shoreline.

An EPA spokeswoman said in an email, “We don’t comment on pending litigation.”