CLEAN POWER PLAN BENEFITS

1) Less Asthma – If you already suffer from asthma, or may be prone to getting it, the Clean Power Plan will help by reducing the air pollution that makes asthma worse. In fact, according to an analysis by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, with the Clean Power Plan in place, kids will suffer up to 90,000 fewer asthma attacks.

2) Less Respiratory Distress – Even if you don’t suffer from asthma, you could suffer from breathing difficulty related to the smog and other pollution generated when power plants burn coal. In fact, your community might be one that suffers from “Code Red” or “Code Orange” days because coal burning is polluting the air so heavily. The Clean Power Plan will finally get utilities to use energy much more efficiently, as well as switch over to solar and wind energy. All that means that less polluting coal will be burned. You’ll be able to breathe easier and not have to stop running or playing outdoors because the air is too toxic to breathe.

3) Fewer Heart Attacks – Air pollution puts a lot of pressure on your heart. When you are breathing dirty air, your heart actually has to work harder to keep oxygenated blood flowing. That’s why people who live in cities where the air is smoggy suffer more heart attacks than people who live in cleaner air. The White House projects that up to 3,600 lives will be saved each year when the Clean Power Plan is fully enacted.

This terrific infographic from EPA explains the many benefits of the Clean Power Plan in greater detail.

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Here’s how to respond to your friends, family and colleagues who don’t understand why President Obama’s Clean Power Plan is so good for people as well as the planet, thanks to EPA Administrator Gina McCarthy, who wrote this analysis for Moms Clean Air Force and all of us who know we must phase out coal and other fossil fuels as soon as possible.

Today, President Obama will unveil the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Clean Power Plan — a historic step to cut the carbon pollution driving climate change. Here are six key things every American should know:

1. IT SLASHES THE CARBON POLLUTION FUELING CLIMATE CHANGE.

Carbon pollution from power plants is our nation’s biggest driver of climate change —a nd it threatens what matters most – the health of our kids, the safety of our neighborhoods, and the ability of Americans to earn a living. The Clean Power Plan sets common sense, achievable state-by-state goals to cut carbon pollution from power plants across the country. Building on proven local and state efforts, the Plan puts our nation on track to cut carbon pollution from the power sector 32 percent below 2005 levels by 2030, all while keeping energy reliable and affordable.

2. IT PROTECTS FAMILIES’ HEALTH.

Cuts to smog and soot that come along with reducing carbon pollution will bring major health benefits for American families. In 2030, this will mean up to 3,600 fewer premature deaths; 90,000 fewer asthma attacks in children; 1,700 fewer hospital admissions; and avoiding 300,000 missed days of school and work. The Clean Power Plan is a historic step forward to give our kids and grandkids the cleaner, safer future they deserve.

3. IT PUTS STATES IN THE DRIVER’S SEAT.

The Clean Power Plan sets uniform carbon pollution standards for power plants across the country—but sets individual state goals based on states’ current energy mix and where they have opportunities to cut pollution. States then customize plans to meet their goals in ways that make sense for their communities, businesses and utilities. States can run their more efficient plants more often, switch to cleaner fuels, use more renewable energy, and take advantage of emissions trading and energy efficiency options.

Because states requested it, EPA is also proposing a model rule states can adopt right away–one that’s cost-effective, guarantees they meet EPA’s requirements, and will let their power plants use interstate trading right away. But states don’t have to use our plan—they can cut carbon pollution in whatever way makes the most sense for them.

The uniform national rates in the Clean Power Plan are reasonable and achievable, because no plant has to meet them alone or all at once. Instead, they have to meet them as part of the grid and over time. In short, the Clean Power Plan puts states in the driver’s seat.

4. IT’S BUILT ON INPUT FROM MILLIONS OF AMERICANS.

The Clean Power Plan reflects unprecedented input from the American people, including 4.3 million comments on the draft plan and input from hundreds of meetings with states, utilities, communities, and others. When folks raised questions about equity and fairness, we listened. That’s why EPA is setting uniform standards to make sure similar plants are treated the same across the country.

 When states and utilities expressed concern about how fast states would need to cut emissions under the draft Plan, we listened. That’s why the Clean Power Plan extends the timeframe for mandatory emissions reductions to begin by two years, until 2022, so utilities will have time to make the upgrades and investments they need to.

But to encourage states to stay ahead of the curve and not delay planned investments, or delay starting programs that need time to pay off, we’re creating a Clean Energy Incentive Program to help states transition to clean energy faster.

It’s a voluntary matching fund program states can use to encourage early investment in wind and solar power projects, as well as energy efficiency projects in low-income communities. Thanks to the valuable input we heard from the public, the final rule is even more fair and more flexible, while cutting more pollution.

5. IT WILL SAVE US BILLIONS OF DOLLARS EVERY YEAR.

With the Clean Power Plan, America is leading by example—showing the world that climate action is an incredible economic opportunity. By 2030, the net public health and climate-related benefits from the Clean Power Plan are estimated to be worth $45 billion every year. And, by design, the Clean Power Plan is projected to cut the average American’s monthly electricity bill by 7% in 2030. We’ll get these savings by cutting energy waste and beefing up energy efficiency across the board—steps that make sense for our health, our future, and our wallets.

6. IT PUTS THE U.S. IN A POSITION TO LEAD ON CLIMATE ACTION.

Today, the U.S. is generating three times more wind energy and 20 times more solar power than when President Obama took office. And the solar industry is adding jobs 10 times faster than the rest of the economy. For the first time in nearly three decades, we’re importing less foreign oil than we’re producing domestically—and using less overall.

Our country’s clean energy transition is happening faster than anyone anticipated—even as of last year when we proposed this rule. The accelerating trend toward clean power, and the growing success of energy efficiency efforts, mean carbon emissions are already going down, and the pace is picking up. The Clean Power Plan will secure and accelerate these trends, building momentum for a cleaner energy future.

Climate change is a global problem that demands a global solution. With the Clean Power Plan, we’re putting America in a position to lead. Since the Plan was proposed last year, the U.S., China and Brazil – three of the world’s largest economies – have announced commitments to significantly reduce carbon pollution. We’re confident other nations will come to the table ready to reach an international climate agreement in Paris later this year.

For More Information:

Clean Power Plan Information Site/US EPA

Moms Clean Air Force

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 That was the message loud and clear at the climate rally held yesterday in Washington, D.C., delivered by the 40,000 or more people who congregated around the Washington Monument before marching to the White House in the largest climate-focused rally in history.

Though the weather was absolutely frigid, the crowd could not have been more fired up. Parents and kids, students and seniors, people of all races and religions came together to demonstrate their love for the environment, their concern for their families and their communities, and their commitment to a cleaner, greener world.

The biggest focus was on President Obama, who made climate change a top priority in his recent State of the Union Address and who must decide whether or not to greenlight the controversial Keystone Pipeline, which would carry oil from Canada, across the U.S. to the Gulf of Mexico. Former White House green jobs advisor Van Jones told the audience from the state, “This will define your legacy, Mr. President.” Indeed, it will.

 I marched with the Alaska Wilderness League, a terrific organization that’s been leading the fight to keep oil drilling out of America’s Arctic Wildlife Refuge for more than 15 years. AWL staffers dressed like polar bears carried signs reading Save the Arctic as we chanted, “What do we want? Polar Bears! What do they need? Ice!”

Moms and dads brought their children to the rally to demonstrate the impact that climate change is having on our families. In many parts of the world, poison ivy has gotten much worse because hotter than normal temperatures have created such ideal growing conditions for this noxious plant. Moms Clean Air Force was there, too, reminding us that the same fossil fuels that cause climate change are polluting our air, a big reason why so many more kids are suffering from asthma these days.

Speaking of kids, they were everywhere at the rally: on their dad’s shoulders, getting their pictures taken with the polar bears, clapping their hands in time to the music. It was great to see so many college students, too. In fact, they’re the ones who led the “Yes, We Can!” chant when one of the stage speakers asked, “Can we stop climate change?”

Thousands of people traveled from far and wide to lend their voices to the rally crowd. When I boarded my local subway to get down to the event, the car was brimming with folks from as far away as Texas and Oklahoma, two states that are directly in the path of the Keystone Pipeline. At the Washington Monument, a woman from my home state of Michigan sported a big cut-out poster to remind us that an oil leak into an important river in the northern part of that state still had not been cleaned up. Meanwhile, rallies were happening in many other cities in the U.S., too. Mary Clare Hunt was among the 2,000 or more who turned up in Los Angeles to say “not” to climate change. You can read her report here.

After rousing speeches at the Monument and much cheering, the massive crowd headed toward the White House. The point of this, afterall, was to persuade President Obama to make good on his pledge to bring climate change to a halt.

But I couldn’t help but feel like a bigger point had been made, too. We live in a democracy, and we have the right to exercise our free speech, assemble for peaceful protest, and determine our own future. That future, and the future of our children, grand children, and great-grandchildren, is very much at stake as we determine not just whether, but how to stop climate change. Peaceful rallies like this one show elected officials, corporations, and other citizens that we take our right to democracy seriously — and so should they.

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