WASHINGTON, DC -- House leadership announced a vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill today that would separate it from voting on the Build Back Better Act, a bill with unprecedented levels of investment in climate action, clean energy jobs, and environmental justice.
Atlanta, GA -- Southern Company, the nation’s third largest utility, has announced plans to close most of its coal burning units at Plant Scherer, Plant Bowen, and Plant Wansley in Georgia, in addition to its coal units at Plant Gaston and Plant Barry in Alabama. The utility announced during its quarterly earnings report on Thursday that the closures will occur by 2028.
David Rogers, Southeast Deputy Regional Director for the Beyond Coal Campaign, released the following statement:
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- After months of negotiations, the House of Representatives will vote today on President Biden’s transformational Build Back Better Act despite opposition from every single Republican member. In addition to essential childcare, eldercare, and other social priorities, the bill invests over $550 billion in climate action, clean energy jobs, and environmental justice -- the largest such investment in U.S. history.
Hartford, CT -- Yesterday, ISO-NE sent a letter to FERC requesting to terminate its contract with NTE Connecticut, LLC the developer of the proposed 650 megawatt fossil fuel power plant in Killingly, citing the developer’s inability to deliver capacity within the tariff’s mandatory deadline. ISO-NE requested approval from FERC within 60 days.
Today the Wisconsin Public Service Commission voted to approve We Energy’s proposal for a new Liquified Natural Gas storage (LNG) facilities in Ixonia and Bluff Creek. With an announcement by We Energy parent company WEC Energy Group earlier this week to move away from coal by 2035, as well as a swath of other proposed projects across the state, the approval signifies a decisive pivot by Wisconsin utilities to double down on gas that is facked and piped from other states. The new proposals have advocacy groups concerned about continuing climate and economic costs of fossil fuels.
Washington, DC -- Today Senator Tom Carper (D-DE) announced his support for reforming the filibuster to pass voting rights legislation. Senator Carper is the latest moderate Democrat to call for a change to filibuster rule. Despite previously being an ardent supporter of the filibuster, Carper’s newfound support comes the day after Senate Republicans abused the filibuster to block a procedural vote to open debate on the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.
New York, NY -- The Sierra Club urges Rep. Kathleen Rice to endorse immediate passage of the Build Back Better Act, a transformational bill that includes the vast majority of President Biden’s domestic agenda, especially historic climate and clean energy action.
Today, Morgan Stanley announced new 2030 targets to reach its commitment to net-zero financed emissions by 2050. Last year, Morgan Stanley became the first major US bank to make a net-zero by 2050 commitment and it is one of the first major US banks, following JPMorgan Chase, to set interim 2030 targets.
Environmental groups long opposed to Line 3 are urging state and federal agencies to step in as pollution along the Line 3 route continues to surface. Construction of the tar sands pipeline was completed in September, but as the weather has shifted, spilled drilling fluid has continued to emerge along the pipeline route.
ATLANTA, GA-- Today, the Sierra Club filed a Motion for Reconsideration with the Georgia Court of Appeals, challenging its decision to allow Georgia Power to collect 100% of its coal ash remediation costs from customers without considering Georgia Power’s culpability in mishandling the coal ash.