The only public comments sent before the meeting concerned air permits, specifically the permit for Xcel’s Cherokee power station. Chandra Rosenthal, who leads the Rocky Mountain office for Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility, which works with whistleblowers to expose illegal government actions and improve laws and regulations, said that the plant was last permitted in 2011, and the state didn’t require modeling to determine compliance with the Clean Air Act. Employees at the time sent emails arguing that because the plant is near a disproportionately impacted community in north Denver, modeling should be required, she told the task force, urging its members to recommend that the Colorado Department of Health and Environment reopen the permit immediately.
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