"The final plant closures in New England will bring us that much closer to a critical goal: the closure of all coal plants in the United States by 2030."

Read the full The Boston Globe op-ed (subscription may be required) by Mike Bloomberg and Gina McCarthy, former White House National Climate Advisor and U.S. EPA Administrator, and current managing co-chair of America is All In.

John,

The last coal plants in New England are shutting down -- and the one-time cradle of the U.S. Industrial Revolution is now poised to help lead America's clean energy revolution.

In an op-ed for The Boston Globe, Mike and Gina McCarthy, former White House National Climate Advisor and U.S. EPA Administrator, and current managing co-chair of America is All In, write about the importance of the news for people and the planet:

"The burning of coal for energy has been poisoning our air and water and making people sick since the Industrial Revolution. It's also the single largest contributor to climate change, responsible for one-third of global carbon emissions. So the work being done to move the United States from coal to clean energy couldn’t be more urgent or important -- or exciting to celebrate."

The closures mean that for the first time in more than a century the region's homes, businesses, schools, hospitals, and other facilities will be powered without burning coal for energy.

More than a decade ago, Bloomberg Philanthropies joined the Sierra Club's Beyond Coal campaign with a goal to retire one-third of U.S. coal plants. The years since have seen unprecedented success for moving America off coal. As Mike and Gina write, rather than closing 30 percent of the nation's coal plants, Beyond Coal has "helped secure the retirement of more than 70 percent of U.S. coal plants," adding that "those coal plant closures -- and planned closures -- account for over 80 percent of all US reductions in carbon emissions since 2010."

Reducing and removing coal burning emissions from the air we breathe has generated massive benefits for people's health and finances, preventing more than 80,000 heart attacks and almost 900,000 asthma attacks, and avoiding $25 billion in health care costs.

And transitioning American communities off coal has saved more than 54,000 lives.

With wind and solar energy costing less, investing in coal doesn't make economic sense. Mike and Gina write that, "old coal plants, which are already wired into the power grid, can often be repurposed into renewable energy plants."

Read the full op-ed for more:

https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/04/04/opinion/coal-plant-closing-climate-change/

Thanks,

MikeBloomberg.com