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Landmark Clean Power Plan Will Save Lives, Protect Environment

Press Release / Last Updated:

EPA Plan Sets First National Standards Limiting Carbon Pollution

Washington, DC – Today, the U.S. Environmental Agency (EPA) unveiled its long-awaited Clean Power Plan (CPP). Elisabeth MacNamara, president of the League of Women Voters of the U.S., issued the following statement praising the plan:

“We are very pleased with the announcement of the Obama Administration’s Clean Power Plan. The plan is the first set of national standards limiting carbon pollution and experts agree that this plan will improve public health while saving lives, creating jobs and protecting our environment.

“The Clean Power Plan is the fulfillment of a promise to the American people and the nations of the world. U.S. leadership on climate change provides the world with its best opportunity to establish a strong international climate agreement as we move towards the next UN Climate Change Conference later this year in Paris.

“Power plants are the number one contributor to carbon pollution. The single largest contributor to climate change is carbon pollution. The CPP is an aggressive, forward-looking regulation that will help in the fight against climate change and protect public health.

“The League of Women Voters has been a leading advocate for these regulations for years and it's exciting to see these important environmental protections being introduced.

“But this is just the beginning of our work. Now we will all need to roll up our sleeves to ensure the effective state implementation of this national plan. This rule will be the most successful when states follow the building blocks laid out by the EPA to bring their own emissions down.

“Today is an important day in the fight against climate change and for the future of our nation. The Clean Power Plan means stronger public health, a thriving economy and an environment protected from the dangerous effects of carbon pollution and climate change,” concluded MacNamara.

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Contact: Kelly Ceballos, 202-263-1331, [email protected].

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