Sierra Club and Potomac Riverkeeper Network, in accordance with the Clean Water Act, filed suit against VEPCO, a subsidiary of Dominion for violating and continuing to violate “an effluent standard or limitation” and continuing to violate its temperature discharge limits at its Mount Storm Power Station.
Hartford, CT -- One day after Connecticut acknowledged it is failing to meet its climate pollution reduction targets, the Energy Efficiency Board (EEB) moved forward with a 3 year plan that will continue subsidizing fossil fuel equipment and appliances.
Kayaker Graham Jordinson, set out on July 18th from Three Forks, Montana, to embark on a 2,341 mile journey down the Missouri River to its confluence with the Mississippi River in St. Louis, Missouri. The aim of his journey is to raise awareness about the detrimental impacts coal fired power plants have on our environment, climate, and water resources. Sioux City will be his first scheduled stop on his coal plant tour, where he will meet with local Sierra Club members to talk about MidAmerican’s George Neal North and South coal plants.
Sierra Club, Prairie Rivers Network, and the Springfield Branch of the NAACP held a press conference today in the aftermath of an incident at the Dallman coal plant owned by the City of Springfield, and which released a lung-burning coal ash dust cloud into the air. City Water, Light, and Power’s Dallman coal plant malfunctioned on the afternoon of Tuesday, August 31, 2021.
Hartford, CT -- Today, the Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection released the latest data on greenhouse gas emissions in the state. The Greenhouse Gas Emissions Inventory shows that Connecticut is not on track to meet the state’s statutorily required reduction of emissions 45 and 80 percent below 2001 levels by 2030 and 2050, respectively.
Today, a settlement agreement was filed between Madison Gas and Electric Company (MGE), Sierra Club, Clean Wisconsin, Citizens Utility Board, RENEW Wisconsin, the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System, and Wisconsin Industrial Energy Group in the utility’s rate case.
A regional coalition of conservation groups commented on PacifiCorp’s 2021 Integrated Resource Plan that was filed today in the six states the utility serves, highlighting the plan’s failure to meet the recommendations of global scientists to transition away from all fossil fuels, as the utility intends to keep coal and gas generation in its resource mix well into the 2040s.
HARRISBURG - Today, Pennsylvania’s Independent Regulatory Review Commission voted 3-2 to approve a regulation that will put the first ever declining limits on carbon dioxide (CO2) pollution from Pennsylvania power plants and allow the Commonwealth to link to the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). This is the last major administrative action required to implement the regulation, which will take effect following publication in the Pennsylvania Bulletin. The earliest date Pennsylvania could formally participate in RGGI is January 1, 2022.
Today, an amendment to HB3666 was introduced in the General Assembly, which fails to act on the urgency of the climate crisis and gives a free pass to the Prairie State coal plant, the largest polluter in Illinois. Despite widespread approval for an energy bill that sets firm deadlines to equitably decarbonize our electric grid and grow Illinois’ clean energy economy, legislators continue to cater to fossil fuel interests. The amendment to HB3666 currently allows Prairie State to continue burning coal without any pollution reductions before 2045, leaves frontline communities vulnerable to short-term pollution increases, and allows fossil fuel companies to appeal to the Illinois Commerce Commission for pollution bailouts. Sierra Club joined other environmental advocates in opposing any bill that jeopardizes people and a livable climate.
After pressure from the public and an order from state regulators, Duke Energy has proposed long-term plans that retire polluting coal earlier and add more renewable energy, but at the same time would add even more fracked gas plants than previously planned.
Last night, Detroit activists and energy experts came together for a digital town hall and community Q & A to discuss Detroit’s energy burden, the percentage of household income spent on energy bills, which has grave disparities across racial lines. The event was hosted by: EcoWorks Detroit, Elevate Energy, Michigan Environmental Justice Coalition, NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council), Sierra Club, Soulardarity and We Want Green Too, and featured a panel of experts that talked about the problem and engaged the community in a discussion about solutions.
The State Corporation Commission of Virginia released its final order in the Appalachian Power Company (APCo) rate case. The Commission denied Effluent Limitations Guidelines (ELG) costs for both the John E. Amos and Mountaineer coal plants, both are West Virginia power plants that provide power to Virginia.