How the Trump administration is blocking the public’s right to protect the environment
Reducing rampant pollution across the United States was so important that when Congress passed many environmental protection laws, including the Clean Air Act, Clean Water Act and Safe Drinking Water Act, it didn’t want to leave enforcement only to the executive branch. Congress specifically wrote into those laws ways for citizens to enforce them through the courts when the government does not…
The Trump administration has taken a stance against citizens enforcing environmental laws, despite what the laws explicitly state. The U.S. Department of Justice asserts that citizens should rely on the executive branch for enforcement, even if that branch chooses not to take action. This stance arises from a recent legal filing that highlights the potential impact on the effectiveness of citizen suit provisions.
Over the past half-century, citizen suits have played a crucial role in cleaning up the environment in the U.S. When citizens or advocacy groups believe a company or government agency is violating environmental laws, they can file a lawsuit to compel compliance. These suits have resulted in substantial civil penalties and have led to meaningful changes in environmental regulations.
To bring a citizen suit, a plaintiff must first notify the responsible party, often the Environmental Protection Agency, about the alleged violation. If no action is taken within 60 days, the plaintiff can proceed with a lawsuit. The process involves seeking orders to stop the polluting activity, requiring compensation for damages, and imposing civil penalties.
However, these citizen suits can only be brought if the government has not initiated an enforcement action or is actively prosecuting the violator. The success of these cases hinges on proving the violation of environmental laws. For instance, violations of the Clean Water Act, which pertains to discharging pollutants without a permit, are relatively straightforward to demonstrate.
As such, more citizen suits have been filed under the Clean Water Act than under any other environmental statute. A case in the Gulf Coast of Texas exemplifies this, where shrimper Diane Wilson successfully sued Formosa Plastics for discharging plastic pellets into a bay. Formosa ultimately settled for $50 million, addressing the pollution and cleaning up the bay.
In another instance, PennEnvironment and Three Rivers Waterkeeper sued Styropek USA for discharging plastic pellets into a Pennsylvania creek, leading to a $2.5 million settlement for cleanup and filtration measures. In 2025, the NAACP, through the NAACP vs. xAI lawsuit, brought the issue to the forefront by suing Elon Musk's AI company for operating 27 natural gas-fired turbines in Mississippi without the required Clean Air Act permits.
The turbines powered xAI's data center and released harmful pollutants. The NAACP alleged that these emissions contributed to increased rates of asthma, respiratory diseases, heart problems, and various cancers. The DOJ countered this lawsuit, citing the absence of executive opposition to the polluting activities.
Written by urgent.news from Fast Company's reporting — not their text. Machine-written; read the original for the full account.
