These safeguards are among the most important climate protections we have. They place limits on how much carbon pollution coal and gas plants can release into the air. Without them, power plants could continue polluting for decades with no meaningful rules to reduce their climate impact.
Nowhere is this more urgent than in the Midwest, which produces more electricity from coal plants than any other region in the country. As a result, our communities face some of the highest exposure to carbon pollution and its impacts on human health, the Great Lakes, and the environment.
Fossil fuel-fired power plants are also the second-largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the United States. In 2023 alone, these plants released more than 1.4 billion metric tons of carbon dioxide. That is more than most countries emit in an entire year.
This pollution is not just a climate threat, it is a public health crisis. Greenhouse gas pollution has been linked to higher rates of heart disease, stroke, chronic respiratory diseases, lung cancer, and more. Rolling back standards would make it worse.
Communities across the Midwest are already feeling the effects. From extreme heat and flooding to worsening air quality, the damage is real and growing. We cannot afford to move backward.
Now is the time to speak out. Tell the EPA to keep strong climate pollution standards in place for coal and gas plants.
