State whistleblowers say several NoCo industrial sites improperly exempted from emissions rules

DENVER — A group of whistleblowers at the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment have told federal regulators that managers at the department told them to approve air emissions permits that broke federal rules, including at sites in Northern Colorado.

The joint letter to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s inspector general claims that staffers at the department were ordered this month to not review short-term emissions of sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter that would count against federally-set limits on airborne pollution, or create models that would anticipate emissions beyond those federal limits.

“In short, under this policy, permit applicants in Colorado no longer have to demonstrate that their proposed sources or modifications comply with these standards in order to get an air permit from CDPHE,” the whistleblowers say in their letter.

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The group also claims several other efforts from the department’s management to loosen air quality restrictions that contributed to the growth of ground-level ozone in the Front Range since 2011, and required staffers only to enforce certain short-term emissions rules only when it deemed that the construction permit would be scrutinized by the public.

The whistleblowers specifically cite the Martin Marietta Materials Inc. (NYSE: MM) concrete factory and Extraction’s oil wells near Kelim as projects that were able to operate without having to prove they were within air quality standards. The whistleblowers say those two developments would have been required to install more emissions controls or downsize the size of the projects to meet regulatory requirements.

“These are only two small facilities located in an area saturated with hundreds of other facilities,

all inside the ozone nonattainment area, and jointly emitting thousands of tons per year of one

of the main ozone precursors, (nitrogen dioxide),” the letter states.

The whistleblowers say those two locations are among dozens across the state that are operating outside of the bounds of the law with unlawfully-issued permits. The letter also claims that the JBS USA plant in Greeley was unlawfully issued permits using models that allegedly underestimate single-hour emissions on purpose.

It’s unclear what exactly would happen to those business locations if the EPA were to intervene on behalf of the whistleblowers.

Representatives for Extraction, JBS and Martin Marietta did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday afternoon.

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