FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 9, 2025
Contact: Nora Naughton, nora.naughton@sierraclub.org, 248-345-1456
Detroit – Donald Trump’s latest executive orders to bolster coal production in the United States pose a threat to Michigan residents' health and their wallets.
Trump’s executive orders aim to force coal plants to remain open past their scheduled retirement dates by invoking an outdated wartime law that allows the Department of Energy to compel power plants to temporarily remain operational. This attempt to revive a dying dirty energy industry – only 15% of US electricity generation comes from coal – cannot be justified.
The most certain outcome of extending the lifespan of coal-fired power plants that are already scheduled to retire and placing aggressive tariffs on renewable energy is raising monthly energy bills for everyday Americans.
Michigan residents already pay some of the highest utility bills in the country. But relief is on the way through our Clean Energy & Jobs Act, which sets the course for Michigan to wean off coal and gas-fired power plants. Consumers Energy’s J.H. Campbell coal plant on Lake Michigan is slated to close this year, and DTE’s coal power plants in Monroe and Belle River are on a path toward retirement in the next seven years.
We have long known that the cheapest and safest forms of energy are wind, solar, and energy efficiency. On average, renewable energy costs 30% less than coal for the same energy output. That is why Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign has successfully advocated for the retirement of 389 coal-fired power plants since 2009.
Bryan Smigielski, Michigan Campaign Organizer:
“Trump’s orders aren’t about easing burdens—they’re about forcing Michigan to rely on expensive, polluting energy sources when we already have proven, cost-effective alternatives. Coal plants are already being phased out precisely because they impose too many hidden costs on our communities—higher utility rates, lost economic productivity, increased healthcare bills, and severe water and air pollution that is costly to control and clean up.”
“If Trump is successful in forcing coal plants to stay open beyond their retirement dates, the rates people pay for energy will go up and more people will die. There is no case to be made for this, economic or otherwise.”
Sierra Club Executive Director Ben Jealous:
“Coal kills. In the last two decades, nearly half a million Americans have died from exposure to coal pollution. Forcing coal plants to stay online will cost Americans more, get more people sick with respiratory and heart conditions, and lead to more premature deaths. Donald Trump’s plan is as despicable as it is reckless and ill-conceived.
“Under the first Trump administration coal capacity retired at a faster rate compared to any other administration, and the Sierra Club fought and successfully helped retire nearly 100 coal plants that were driving up electricity cost and polluting in our communities. Just as we did then, we will not back down from Trump and his dangerous and deadly plans.”