New EPA Standards Set the Path for a Clean Energy Future

On Thursday April 25, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency announced a suite of new regulations and programs that will slash greenhouse gas emissions, speed up clean energy development and reduce hazardous pollution. Among those announcements was the EPA’s new carbon standard for existing coal-fired and new natural gas-fired power plants. This new standard lays out the timeline for these power plants to adopt proven, cost-effective, modern technologies to reduce climate pollution. 

“The EPA’s new power plant greenhouse gas emissions rule is a long time coming and we’re excited to see it now finalized. By setting carbon standards for new and existing coal- and gas-fired power plants, the EPA is aligning the energy industry with our national goal to reach 100% clean power by 2035,” said Laura Brannen, federal climate policy lead at The Nature Conservancy. “Energy utilities and regulators now have clarity on what standards they’ll be held to so that they can more confidently plan for and invest in our clean energy future. This will help enable the clean energy industry to grow in ways that will continue to support communities and tackle climate change.

“We’re pleased to see that this new standard took into consideration and adopted some of the recommendations that The Nature Conservancy made with our partners at the Clean Air Task Force and Natural Resources Defense Council. We’re committed to tackling climate change and this goes a long way towards meeting the U.S.’s climate goals and the goals of the internationally agreed upon Paris Agreement. We look forward to working with the U.S. government to make sure that these new standards are implemented in ways that will benefit our communities and nature as well as the climate.”