A federal judge late last week dismissed litigation filed by environmentalists seeking to block BP’s $3.8 billion expansion of its oil refinery along the shore of Lake Michigan.
The National Resources Defense Council wanted the project sent to the Indiana Department of Environmental Management where it would face stricter air pollution control standards to win a permit than those imposed by the state department that reviewed it.
U.S. District Court Judge Philip Simon refused to hear the case because of its similarities to three appeals filed by other environmental groups pending in state courts. The lawsuit alleged that BP violated federal clean air rules because it had not received the proper permit based on the project, its impact and an increase in emissions of hazardous pollutants.
BP is moving forward with the project, scheduled for completion in 2011. Hearings on the state cases are set for November.
