January 08, 2026
Environmental and community groups submitted two petitions to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency asking it to object to two inadequate air permit renewals the Indiana Department of Environmental Management (IDEM) recently issued to a steel plant and oil refinery in Northwest Indiana. A petition was filed on January 2 in connection to a permit renewal for BP Whiting and a separate petition was filed on December 23, 2025 in connection to a U.S. Steel Midwest Plant in Portage permit renewal. The permits fail to include many basic provisions of the Clean Air Act, including clear and enforceable monitoring, testing and recordkeeping requirements sufficient to assure compliance with all applicable requirements.
The U.S. Steel Midwest Plant petition was filed on behalf of the Environmental Law & Policy Center (ELPC), Gary Advocates for Responsible Development (GARD), Just Transition Northwest Indiana (JTNWI), Northern Lake County Environmental Partnership (NLCEP), National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA), Abrams Environmental Law Clinic, and Faith in Place. The groups contend that IDEM disregarded key concerns that U.S. EPA and other Commenters raised about the permits during the public comment period, specifically the permit’s failure to include requirements that ensure compliance with emission limits and federal regulations.
The BP Whiting petition was filed on behalf of ELPC, GARD, Environmental Integrity Project, Save the Dunes, JTNWI, NLCEP, and Faith in Place. The groups contend that, among other shortcomings, BP’s air permit fails to include an emissions limit on particulate matter that is required by Indiana’s federally-approved State Implementation Plan.
Kerri Gefeke, ELPC Associate Attorney, said:
“U.S. EPA should object to these permits because they’re inconsistent with the Clean Air Act and The Region’s Hoosiers should not feel like they are living in a sacrifice zone. Numerous studies show that residents living near these facilities already suffer from some of the highest rates of air pollution in the nation – resulting in high rates of asthma, cancer, and other diseases. And recent reporting identifies Indiana’s natural environment as ranked dead last based on air and water quality as well as pollution threats.
“IDEM needs to do better and ensure that BP Whiting and U.S. Steel Midwest Plant are operating in a way that is not only economically lucrative but also protective of human health. IDEM can do that by simply ensuring that the permits it issues follow the law and include the necessary monitoring provisions to ensure that these plants – and similar facilities – are not polluting more than what’s allowable in their permits.”
Dorreen Carey, President of Gary Advocates for Responsible Development, said:
“For over 100 years Northwest Indiana residents have been continuously exposed to the daily, monthly, and yearly air pollution from the iron and steelmaking process including particulate matter, NOx, SO2, and hazardous air pollutants like mercury and lead. Upgrades in air pollution monitoring and control at these plants are long overdue. The outdated and insufficient requirements for U.S. Steel and BP Whiting air emission monitoring contained in the IDEM Title V Permit Renewals do not allow for continuous real time information, timely intervention, and the corrective action needed to assure compliance and enforcement of the Clean Air Act.
“EPA must object to this deficient IDEM Permit Renewal and require revisions to the air monitoring methodology that will include updated and supplemental monitoring of emissions and opacity limits to ensure permit compliance and current and ongoing protection of nearby residents’ health and environment.”