Florida's controversial "Alligator Alcatraz" immigrant detention center is facing a new lawsuit alleging the facility has been operating major diesel-powered equipment that is polluting the air in a wetland ecosystem.
The legal challenge adds fresh pressure on state officials as questions continue to swirl over whether the Everglades site will shut down soon or remain open for years, WGCU News reported.
The Center for Biological Diversity said it filed suit in federal court against the Florida Division of Emergency Management, citing what it described as "substantial, unpermitted pollution" from diesel generators and other equipment at the detention center in eastern Collier County.
The group said the facility has used multiple industrial generators since operations began in June 2025 to run air conditioners, floodlights, and a staff village for as many as 1,000 workers. The lawsuit argues that the setup violates the federal Clean Air Act because the state did not obtain the required air permit for equipment releasing harmful pollutants.
Those emissions allegedly include benzene, formaldehyde, nitrogen oxides, and particulate matter — some of which have even been linked to childhood autism. The group said the alleged violations could carry civil fines of up to $124,426 for each day, with the money going to the U.S. Treasury.
The lawsuit arrives even as reports from vendors suggested the site could close in June. But Kevin Guthrie, the executive director of the Florida Division of Emergency Management, recently said he had no closure schedule and that the center might stay open for two years, or "maybe even longer depending on the needs of the federal government."
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Big Cypress National Preserve surrounds the detention center, and the area includes vulnerable wetlands and threatened wildlife such as Florida panthers, Florida bonneted bats, and Everglade snail kites.
Dirty diesel emissions can worsen air quality for workers, detainees, tribal communities, and anyone living near the preserve. In a region already dealing with climate and environmental stress, the pollution adds another burden.
There is also a cultural and human dimension to the fight. The Miccosukee Tribe of Florida has villages near the site and joined an earlier June 2025 lawsuit challenging the project's rapid construction without environmental review.
And despite reports of a possible shutdown, an inspection on Tuesday by U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost found 655 people were still being held there.
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The new Clean Air Act case builds on a broader legal fight already underway. Friends of the Everglades, the Center for Biological Diversity, and the Miccosukee Tribe have also challenged the facility under other environmental and historic preservation laws, including the National Environmental Policy Act and the National Historic Preservation Act.
The conservation groups have also signaled plans to pursue claims tied to the Endangered Species Act, the Clean Water Act, and the National Park Service Organic Act.
If the site does close, Frost said he was told that once the facility is empty, taking down the infrastructure could require 15 to 30 days. But government officials have made no public pledge to close it.
"Governor DeSantis continues to shamelessly pollute the fragile wetlands and pristine air critical to the health of Big Cypress while refusing to publicly commit to shutting down the facility," said Ryan Maher, a staff attorney at the Center. "Every day this facility continues to operate is another day of harm to people, endangered species, and the delicate wetlands that sustain life in the Everglades."
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