Judge rejects Trump’s wild claim EPA can dismiss data center pollution lawsuits

A federal judge rejected the Trump administration's claim that the Environmental Protection Agency can unilaterally dismiss citizen lawsuits under the Clean Air Act, allowing a NAACP lawsuit against Elon Musk's SpaceXAI to proceed over alleged pollution from unpermitted gas turbines at its Colossus data center in Memphis, Tennessee. The NAACP sought an injunction requiring best available pollution control technology and penalties up to $124,426 per day per violation, arguing turbines risked spiking pollution in predominantly Black neighborhoods. Trump argued the EPA could dismiss suits whenever the president decides against enforcement, claiming citizen penalties would not serve the public interest for AI firms supporting his AI Action Plan.

Judge Debra Brown ruled nothing in the Clean Air Act allows the EPA administrator to unilaterally dismiss a citizen suit, calling the position "extraordinary" with no legal grounding. She noted Congress considered but rejected a 1990 amendment granting such authority, and that citizen suits exist for when the government fails to enforce the Act. Earthjustice, partnering with the NAACP, praised the ruling and vowed to continue holding the company accountable.

Source

Judge rejects Trump’s wild claim EPA can dismiss data center pollution lawsuits — Ars Technica