Our movement has been racking up BIG wins this year, thanks to our advocacy with the Biden-Harris administration and the generosity of LCV members like you, Friend.

I wouldn’t want you to miss a single detail about these historic wins and everything we’ve done, together, to get here. Wins like these go to show: when we fight, we win.

In the last month, LCV and the environmental movement won dozens of new environmental protections and clean energy advances. These include new policies to cut pollution from power plants, $7 billion for the Solar for All fund, a long-awaited hazardous substance designation for toxic PFAS “forever” chemicals, and a new partnership to protect freshwater resources, as well as the opening of applications for the American Climate Corps.

Here are some highlights of our Earth Week wins:

1. WIN: EPA Announces New Protections Against Power Plant Pollution
   
   The EPA released new policies to tackle pollution from power plants after tens of thousands of LCV members wrote in to support stronger protections.
   
   These policies will reduce carbon emissions from existing coal and new natural gas power plants, update and strengthen the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards (MATS), cut wastewater pollution, and implement new regulations on coal ash.
   
   Pollution from power plants, including arsenic, soot, mercury, and other toxic materials, threatens the health and safety of our communities, especially those living nearby, which are disproportionately low-wealth communities and communities of color.
   
   The new safeguards will help to protect the climate and provide billions of dollars in public health benefits nationwide each year.
2. WIN: U.S. Government Launches the American Climate Corps
   
   LCV members like you were at the forefront of the fight to pass the Inflation Reduction Act, the strongest legislative action in history to combat climate change. Now, one of its signature initiatives, the American Climate Corps, is ready for launch.
   
   Modeled after President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s Civilian Conservation Corps, the initiative will put over 20,000 young people to work fighting the damaging effects of climate change, and will expand the country’s clean energy and climate-resilient sectors.
   
   The program will prepare participants with skills to advance their careers, expand their eligibility for graduate programs, and place them in priority communities across the country. If you, or someone you know, are ready to work for a better future for our climate, apply today >>
3. WIN: Massive Expansion of Solar Energy
   
   President Biden announced that the EPA will invest $7 billion in grants to help communities nationwide access the environmental and cost benefits of residential and community solar, another example of the historic climate action that’s being made possible by legislation that LCV members like you helped pass into law.
   
   The grants will be awarded to state, local, and tribal governments, as well as municipalities and non-profits. Projects funded by the grants are concentrated in low-income communities where residents often spend up to 30% of their income on energy costs. EPA estimates that these projects will save households a total of $8 billion on energy bills over the life of the program.
   
   The projects will also create 200,000 jobs and advance President Biden’s Justice40 initiative to drive at least 40% of federal investments to address environmental inequities into low-wealth communities and communities of color.
4. WIN: Fighting to Eliminate “Forever Chemicals” From Our Water
   
   After years of advocacy by our movement, EPA has listed PFOS and PFOA, two toxic “forever chemicals” linked to various types of cancer and other health issues, as hazardous chemicals under the Superfund program. This designation will expedite PFAS clean-up operations nationwide in order to cut PFAS pollution, protect public health and the environment, and hold polluters accountable to clean up our land and the water we drink.
5. WIN: Restoring Wetlands Across the Nation
   
   Speaking of clean water, the Biden-Harris administration has launched the “America the Beautiful Freshwater Challenge: A Partnership to Conserve and Restore America’s Rivers, Lakes, Streams, and Wetlands” to protect and restore 8 million acres of wetlands and 100,000 miles of rivers and streams nationwide.
   
   This urgently needed effort seeks to undo damage from last year’s extremist Supreme Court decision, Sackett v. EPA, which stripped protections from over 90% of the country’s wetlands. The partnership has over 100 inaugural members, including LCV, 34 state and local governments, and eight Tribes, who together will work to ensure that our nation’s freshwater resources are protected for current and future generations.
6. WIN: Expanding San Gabriel Mountains and Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monuments
   
   Last but certainly not least, our movement notched a HUGE victory when President Biden announced that he would expand the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument and the Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument.
   
   Thousands of LCV members like you wrote to the President to demand that he take action — and because you acted, generations of people will be able to enjoy these majestic protected landscapes.

Friend — victories like these don’t just happen. It takes hard work, tireless advocacy, and ongoing support from LCV members like you. Thank you.

We’ll be in touch soon with more details on our campaigns and more ways for you to help fight for people and our planet.

Onward,

Gene Karpinski
President
League of Conservation Voters

P.S. If you’re able, I hope you’ll chip in to LCV today to help secure more incredible victories like these.