Christine Ho, christine.ho@sierraclub.org
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, the U.S. District Circuit Court for the District of Columbia ruled in favor of the Sierra Club, overturning the Department of Energy’s“emergency” order overriding the state’s and utility’s decision to close the J.H. Campbell coal-fired power plant.
In May 2025, Trump’s Department of Energy issued a last-minute “emergency order” days before the J.H. Campbell power plant was scheduled to retire. Sierra Club and Earthjustice, along with the State of Michigan, successfully argued that there was no “energy emergency” at the time of the extension order, and the order was an unlawful use of Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act.
Since the illegal order was issued, the J.H. Campbell power plant has been costing families in the Midwest region $600,000 a day to remain online. The administration has also issued similar unlawful orders across the country. According to Sierra Club’s “Burning Money” tracker, these orders have cost Americans over $546 million dollars to date. The Sierra Club has filed challenges against every unlawful extension order issued by the DOE.
By delaying the plant’s retirement and occupying the site of the power plant, the administration is also keeping new, cost-saving, clean energy projects from coming online. According to Sierra Club’s Out of Control dashboard, the J.H. Campbell plant kills an estimated 66 people each year from soot and smog pollution.
“Today’s ruling is a victory for families across the Midwest who are tired of paying to keep this old, expensive, and dirty power plant online,” said Sierra Club Chief Appellate Counsel Sanjay Narayan. “Instead of working to lower costs and clean up our air and water, the Trump administration has been pulling out all the stops to try to bolster dirty and expensive fossil fuels–at public expense. This reckless agenda will not succeed. We will continue to hold the Department of Energy accountable to the law, and ensure that the J.H. Campbell plant finally retires as it was scheduled to, and we will continue to fight back against the other illegal extensions across the country.”
“The court issued a rebuke of the Trump Administration’s abuse of emergency powers,” said Earthjustice Attorney Michael Lenoff. “The DOE needs to stay in its lane and use its emergency powers only in actual emergencies. Preventing the market-driven retirements of coal plants to advance a coal-friendly agenda is not a proper use of emergency powers. We will continue to challenge unlawful orders if DOE persists in issuing them.”
About the Sierra Club
The Sierra Club is America’s largest and most influential grassroots environmental organization, with millions of members and supporters. In addition to protecting every person's right to get outdoors and access the healing power of nature, the Sierra Club works to promote clean energy, safeguard the health of our communities, protect wildlife, and preserve our remaining wild places through grassroots activism, public education, lobbying, and legal action. For more information, visit www.sierraclub.org.