A coalition of 36 environmental groups recently submitted a letter to the Environmental Protection Agency in support of the Regional Haze Rule (RHR), which requires federal and state agencies, federal land managers and stakeholders to work together to restore clear skies in 156 national parks and wilderness areas (Class I areas).
In late September, the EPA sent out advanced notice seeking input “regarding how it can meaningfully revise the RHR to streamline regulatory requirements impacting states’ visibility improvement obligations under the [Clean Air Act].” Environmental groups worry that any revisions could weaken the rule and threaten efforts to restore clean air to national parks.
In the letter, the groups point out that the “Haze Rule has delivered significant cost-effective clean air benefits to national parks, wilderness areas and communities across the nation in the past 15 years—over 1.4 million tons of visibility impairing pollution has been reduced, improving scenic views and making air healthier to breathe across the nation. In places like Great Smoky Mountains National Park, visibility has increased by nearly 40 miles from haze pollution reductions.”
However, they also stated that a National Parks Conservation Association’s Polluted Parks 2024 analysis showed that “97% of national parks continue to suffer from unsatisfactory levels of hazy skies, indicating they are far from achieving naturally clean air.”
The groups warn that that EPA’s current proposal could create “off-ramps” that let states skip required cleanup plans, slow progress, or even avoid submitting new plans altogether.
In a related document outlining detailed comments (attached), the organizations argue that the Clean Air Act requires every contributing state to submit regular haze plans and to base “reasonable progress” decisions on a full four-factor analysis of available controls—not on abstract metrics or safe harbors. They urge EPA to keep 10-year planning cycles, reject broad exemptions, maintain strong visibility monitoring and metrics, revisit outdated pollution-control determinations, and ensure Federal Land Managers have a meaningful role in reviewing state plans.
“Americans and people from around the world love and cherish our national parks and wilderness areas,” the letter states. “We must ensure continued reductions in haze pollution in the years and decades to come to benefit these treasured places and our communities.”
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