Amy Dominguez, amy.dominguez@sierraclub.org
Salt Lake City, UT – In a new version of Sierra Club’s groundbreaking report, the Dirty Truth About Climate Pledges, PacifiCorp has earned a D grade for the way the utility has delayed the transition to clean energy from coal and gas that poisons the air, threatening the public health of communities, and exacerbating the climate crisis. The largest grid operator in the West, PacifiCorp serves more than 2 million customers as Rocky Mountain Power in Utah, Wyoming, and Idaho, and as Pacific Power in Oregon, Washington, and California.
The report assigned utilities a score based on their plans in three areas: 1) commitments to retire coal by 2030, 2) plans to build gas through 2030, 3) plans to build or purchase clean energy by 2030. The score is on a scale of 0 to 100, with a utility earning points by committing to retire coal and adding clean energy and losing points by adding new gas.
In Utah and Wyoming, PacifiCorp operates the largest, most harmful, and most expensive coal fleet in the western United States. The six-state utility is an outlier among major power generators by refusing to set clean energy or climate commitments, and planning to burn coal beyond 2030 and into the 2040’s. PacifiCorp is holding onto some of the dirtiest coal plants in the country, including the Hunter and Huntington coal plants in Utah and the Jim Bridger coal plant in Wyoming, where it has been fighting to avoid common-sense pollution control measures required under the Clean Air Act. States like Utah and Wyoming have unacceptably let these facilities off the hook from cleaning up for decades, prioritizing polluters over the health of people and the environment.
Statement from Lindsay Beebe, Senior Campaign Representative for Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign:
“I remember in 2019 when Rocky Mountain Power CEO Gary Hoogeveen told a room full of concerned customers demanding clean power that you would never see the company set an emissions reduction goal because commitments are just words. He told us that we could judge the company’s commitment to serving clean power by their actions. Well, the grades are in. Rocky Mountain Power has proved by their actions to care more for shareholder profits than serving communities with clean, affordable electricity and taking responsibility for their legacy as one of the largest climate polluters in the country. It's past time for the company to chart a new course and establish the ambition to be a leader in clean energy transformation on par with its position as one of the largest corporations in the World.”
Statement from Rob Joyce, Wyoming Energy Organizer for Sierra Club:
“This report confirms what community members in Wyoming have known: that PacifiCorp is putting profits over people. For too long, the company’s Jim Bridger plant has gone unregulated in violation of the Clean Air Act, poisoning the air that we breathe, and blurring our iconic scenic views. Haze pollution that comes from coal-fired gas plants accounts for 84% of the pollution that impairs the visibility of our skylines and natural spaces. A clean energy transition is long overdue.”
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About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.