Press Releases

A standing-room-only crowd of Duke Energy customers packed the N.C. Utilities Commission chambers tonight to demand a long-term energy plan from the utility that prioritizes safe, clean renewables over dirty, dangerous fossil fuels. Tonight was the only in-person opportunity for the public to weigh in on the plans,

Baltimore, MD-- Baltimore City Councilmember Kristerfer Burnett (District 8), in partnership with the Sierra Club, introduced a resolution today calling for the Maryland General Assembly to pass, and Governor Hogan to sign, legislation establishing a clear and enforceable commitment to move Maryland beyond coal-fired power and create a Coal Community Transition Fund to support impacted communities and workers. The fund would support investments in job retraining and assistance for those affected, as well as increased investments in clean energy sources that will provide good-paying, local jobs.

Today, Georgia Power, the state’s largest utility, filed a new draft long-term energy plan with the state Public Service Commission that calls for the retirement of two of its polluting coal plants and the addition of 1 gigawatt in renewable resources.

Today, the Virginia State Corporation Commission took a stand to protect Virginians by rejecting Phase 1 of Dominion Energy’s “grid modernization” plan, as the corporation failed to present the benefits or need for the proposed expensive and unnecessary measures.

Today, Sierra Club secured Cleco’s commitment to phase out coal use and reduce the operation of 1,200 MW of uneconomic coal-burning generation and to acquire 200 MW of renewable energy--with a goal of achieving 30% renewables, fleet-wide--as part of a multi-party settlement approving Cleco’s $1 billion purchase of NRG’s Louisiana wholesale generation business.

Coal bailout architect and FERC Commissioner Bernard McNamee has submitted a letter to Senate Democrats informing them of an ethics official’s advice to him on recusing himself from participating in commission decisions that are pertinent to his past coal bailout work for Energy Secretary Rick Perry.

As Donald Trump attempts to manufacture a crisis along the border, a series of new reports indicates he is continuing to ignore a real, critical crisis that threatens the health and safety of communities across the country.

Harrisburg, P.A.-- Governor Wolf signed an executive order today committing Pennsylvania to reducing greenhouse gas emissions 26 percent by 2025 and 80 percent by 2050 from 2005 levels, consistent with the 2015 Paris Climate Accord. The executive order also includes a provision re-establishing the Green Government Council, co-chaired by the Department of General Services, the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, and the Department of Environmental Protection. The goals of the council are to reduce energy consumption in state government by 21 percent, procure 40 percent of state agency energy use from renewables, and replace 25 percent of the state fleet with electric vehicles by 2025.

  New Report Shows Coal Plant Highly Uneconomic        

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Today, Acting EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler proposed plans to ignore the health and environmental benefits of clean air and water safeguards while prioritizing corporate polluter profits as part of a planned roll-back to the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS). MATS protects Americans from pollution from coal- and oil-fired power plants. These safeguards, which EPA finalized in 2012 with compliance deadlines that ended in 2016, drastically curtailed the emission of dangerous toxic pollution that poisons wildlife, contaminates seafood, and threatens the health of pregnant women and young children.