coal

December 18, 2018

On the heels of the widely publicized release of a report on pervasive groundwater contamination at Illinois’ coal ash sites, and inaction from Governor Rauner’s Illinois EPA, Sierra Club filed a lawsuit against Texas-based Vistra Energy for ongoing and repeated violations of Illinois water quality standards at three of its Illinois coal plants.

December 17, 2018

Trenton, New Jersey -- Governor Murphy announced his plan to rejoin the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative today, a multi-state program establishing limits on carbon pollution from the region’s power plants. The announcement comes after his January 2018 Executive Order directing the administration to re-enter the program. New Jersey is proposing to enter the regional program starting at 18 million tons/CO2 per year. Current states included in RGGI are Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New York, Rhode Island, and Vermont. Virginia and New Jersey both now plan to participate.

December 13, 2018

Today the Sierra Club and environmental allies argued in U.S. District Court that the Trump Administration violated the National Environmental Policy Act when it unilaterally halted a comprehensive review of federal coal leasing on public lands.

December 6, 2018

Former coal lobbyist and acting Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Andrew Wheeler announced plans today to roll back carbon pollution standards for new coal-fired power plants, a move many onlookers view as another bid to help his former employers in the coal industry.

December 6, 2018

The U.S. Senate confirmed coal bailout architect and fossil fuel proponent Bernard McNamee to the technology-neutral Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) today, despite strong opposition from public health groups, environmental organizations, and elected leaders.

December 4, 2018

This afternoon, Xcel Energy announced its commitment to reducing carbon emissions by 80 percent by 2030 and 100 percent by 2050. This is the first major interstate utility in the U.S. to commit to eliminating carbon emissions.

December 4, 2018

The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced today that American coal consumption in 2018 is expected to be at its lowest level in the past 39 years.

December 4, 2018

Today, the Iowa Utilities Board announced its approval of MidAmerican’s Wind XII project. While applauding the significant advancement of clean energy, Sierra Club will continue to push MidAmerican to provide a true "100% clean energy" plan, one that phases out the Company's continued heavy reliance on coal generation.

November 29, 2018

A new report written by Environmental Integrity Project, Earthjustice, Prairie Rivers Network and Sierra Club, revealed widespread pollution of the groundwater surrounding 90 percent of reporting Illinois coal ash dumpsites.

November 28, 2018

Pittsburgh, PA -- The Pennsylvania Department of the Environmental Protection (DEP) hosted a public hearing yesterday on its drafted update to the water pollution permit for the Bruce Mansfield coal-fired power plant. The plant owned by FirstEnergy, is a 2,700 megawatt plant located on the Ohio River in Beaver County. It is currently the largest coal plant in the state, and one of the largest remaining plants in the country.

November 27, 2018

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee reported out the nomination of coal bailout architect Bernard McNamee for the technology neutral Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC)

November 19, 2018

KNOXVILLE, TENN. —The Tennessee Valley Authority today released its draft environmental reviews on potential for coal unit retirements at Bull Run in Anderson County Tennessee and Paradise in western Kentucky’s Muhlenberg County.