By Adrienne Cooper October 10, 2017

Today EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt announced the Trump administration’s plan to repeal the Clean Power Plan, ceding America’s leadership on climate action as the global community moves forward to addressing one of the greatest challenges of our lifetime. There are also reports that the administration will not offer a replacement to cut pollution that threatens our health, our communities and our planet.

The Clean Power Plan, according to EPA’s own estimates, would prevent up to 3,600 premature deaths and 90,000 childhood asthma attacks every year once fully implemented. Instead of standing up for our health and for future generations, Scott Pruitt and the Trump administration have chosen to do the bidding of the polluter industry and their lobbyists.

Climate change is happening now. The recent hurricanes that devastated the Caribbean and the Gulf Coast were supercharged by warming waters, and drought and higher temperatures have fueled the wildfires that are raging out West. Repealing the Clean Power Plan will mean expose more people to dirtier air, flooding, droughts and more extreme weather events.

More than 70% of Americans – including a majority in every Congressional district – support stronger limits on carbon pollution from power plants, a major pillar of the Clean Power Plan. Cities, governors and even large companies like Apple, support the Clean Power Plan because it will help drive the clean energy economy and create jobs, and gives states flexibility to reduce dangerous carbon pollution.

Defend Our Future is part of a broad and diverse coalition of partners who are working across the political spectrum to find solutions and protect communities and the most vulnerable from the impacts of climate change. We will not surrender in our fight to find solutions that will benefit all Americans.