A coalition of Louisiana environmental groups is suing the state over a law they say violates their free speech rights by restricting them from sharing information about air quality.

On days of heavy pollution in Sulphur, a southwest Louisiana town surrounded by more than 16 industrial plants, Cynthia “Cindy” Robertson once flew a red flag outside her home so her community knew they faced health hazards from high levels of soot and other pollutants.

But she stopped flying the flag after Louisiana passed a law last May that threatened fines of up to $1 million for sharing information about air quality that did not meet strict standards.

On Thursday, Robertson’s group Micah 6:8 Mission and other Louisiana environmental organizations sued the state in federal court over the law they say restricts their free speech and undermines their ability to promote public health in heavily industrialized communities.

  • CosmicTurtle0@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
    10·
    8 hours ago

    Ah the classic Republican thinking “If we can’t stop it, we’ll make it impossible.”

    Worked with abortion and now they are doing it on science.

    In response to the influx of grassroots air monitoring, Louisiana’s Legislature passed the Community Air Monitoring Reliability Act, or CAMRA, which requires that community groups that monitor pollutants “for the purpose of alleging violations or noncompliance” of federal law must follow EPA standards, including approved equipment that can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars.

    Maybe, just maybe, if you have a ton of grassroots air quality monitoring, you might have air quality issues. 🤷‍♂️