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A coal-fueled Marine Corps Air Station in North Carolina failed an air pollution test but refused to pay the corresponding state civil penalty. Now, a federal circuit court has ruled against the federal government, ordering it to pay $8,000 to the Tar Heel State.
Under the federal Clean Air Act, all federal facilities that are “engaged in any activity resulting . . . in the discharge of air pollutants” must comply with state air quality regulations. In 2014, the Cherry Point Marine Corps Air Station in Havelock, N.C. obtained a state-issued permit to operate coal-powered steam boilers for heat, but the permit set a limit on hazardous emissions; two years later, a compliance test showed that the station “dramatically exceeded” the emissions limit, thereby violating its permit.
North Carolina imposed a fine of $8,000 for the violation plus an additional $472 in investigation fees; when the Marine Corps refused to pay the fine, North Carolina sued in state court. The federal government first removed the case to federal court, then moved to dismiss the lawsuit on the grounds that it had “sovereign immunity” from civil penalties imposed by a state entity.
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