Comment submitted by Lynda Heideman

I am writing to express my strong opposition to the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) proposed rule to redefine “begin actual construction” under the Clean Air Act's New Source Review program. For nearly 50 years, the New Source Review program has required major sources of air pollution—including data centers, power plants, and industrial facilities—to obtain preconstruction permits before breaking ground. That means a thorough environmental analysis and public comment window before any ground is broken on a new source of pollution. It is the law's core protection for communities: for the families who live, work, and raise children in the shadow of those polluting facilities. The EPA’s proposal would allow companies to start building major polluting, industrial projects before completing federal air pollution reviews and obtaining required permits. Companies could begin clearing vegetation and wildlife habitat, excavating land, laying pipes, and installing electrical transmission lines before assessing the project’s impacts to the environment or public health. One of the goals of this federal proposal is to allow hyperscale A.I. data centers and infrastructure to be built faster. Those data centers are a particular source of concern as they require immense amounts of energy, deplete water supplies, strip away natural landscapes, and impact the public health of nearby communities. By allowing major industrial entities—and likely major polluters— to execute massive site preparation, excavation, and foundational infrastructure work without an air permit, you are effectively reducing public participation to a meaningless formality. Once a developer invests millions of dollars into a site, the political and economic momentum makes it virtually impossible for local communities to alter or halt the project—no matter the cost to public health. The public's right to participate, to demand stronger pollution controls, and to see a permit denied when the harms are too great would all be gutted. I urge the EPA to return to its historic mission of protecting human health and the environment. Communities deserve a say in what gets built next door before the concrete is poured—not after. I urge the EPA to withdraw this proposal and to preserve the preconstruction permitting protections that have safeguarded American air quality for half a century. Thank you for the opportunity to comment, Lynda Heideman