The “1-mile rule”: Texas’ unwritten, arbitrary policy protects big polluters from citizen complaints

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For years the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality has denied citizens the ability to challenge air pollution permits because they live more than a mile away. Yet, the rule is not codified in Texas law or TCEQ rules. Via insideclimate

analysis from Ranajit Sahu, a private environmental consultant in California who previously managed air quality programs and has a Ph.D. from the California Institute of Technology. He testified that harmful health impacts from the terminal could extend up to 5 miles away., led by a researcher at Texas A&M University and published in the journal Ecotoxicology, which linked clusters of genetic damage among cows in Calhoun County to industrial emissions up to 15 kilometers away.

They included Mauricio Blanco, a 51-year-old shrimper who said he spends nine hours per day on the water close to the proposed facility, even though he lives 6 miles away. Baker acknowledged Miller’s economic concerns, but concluded that “based on his location relative to the terminal, Mr. Miller’s health and safety would not be impacted in a manner different from the general public.”

 

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