Environmental groups say the state didn’t properly consider climate impacts of Laurel plant

The state’s approach to disclosing climate impacts in its regulatory decisions has entered Montana’s judicial arena once more.

On Sept. 29 , Montana Environmental Information Center filed a lawsuit against the Montana Department of Environmental Quality , alleging that the state failed to properly consider and disclose the climate impacts and greenhouse gas emissions associated with Yellowstone County Generating Station, a gas plant NorthWestern Energy opened in Laurel in 2024 that was forecast to emit more than 23 million tons of atmosphere-warming greenhouse gases over a 30-year operational life.

In its complaint, MEIC resurfaced a pair of rulings the Montana Supreme Court issued in the past year. The first is the Held v. Montana decision, where justices sided with 16 young Mo