Climate Reality Submits More Than 26,000 Comments to EPA In Support of Clean Cars and Clean Power

Washington, DC – In October, The Climate Reality Project submitted more than 26,000 comments to the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), opposing its plans to weaken fuel efficiency standards and replace the Clean Power Plan with a polluter-friendly policy that would allow coal-fired power plants to emit more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. 

Climate Reality’s Cleaner Cars and Dirty Power Scam campaigns secured 13,017 and 13,123 signatures, respectively, from Climate Reality’s network of supporters and activists.

“Clean cars and clean power are the future, and EPA’s policies are unsuccessfully trying to revert us back to the past,” said Ken Berlin, president and CEO of The Climate Reality Project. “These comments are just a small sampling of the millions of Americans who overwhelmingly want the federal government to support clean energy, help create twenty-first century jobs, and act on climate.”

EPA has faced fierce pushback since announcing its intentions to weaken current vehicle efficiency standards and replace America’s historic Clean Power Plan, a 2015 rule directly aimed at curbing the greenhouse gas emissions driving the climate crisis. By 2030, the Clean Power Plan was expected to reduce carbon pollution from electric power by 32 percent. Fourteen states have publicly opposed EPA’s proposed replacement plan, issuing joint comments and pledging to continue their efforts to reduce emissions from the electricity sector. States have also initiated legal action against the federal government to defend the federal vehicle emissions standards also under attack by EPA.

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ABOUT THE CLIMATE REALITY PROJECT   

Founded by Nobel Laureate and former US Vice President Al Gore, The Climate Reality Project is working to catalyze a global solution to the climate crisis by making urgent action a necessity across every level of society. With a global movement more than 5 million strong and a grassroots network of trained Climate Reality Leader activists, we are spreading the truth about the climate crisis and building popular support for clean energy solutions. For more information, visit www.climaterealityproject.org or follow us on Twitter at @ClimateReality.