Contact: Anthony Campisi
Anthony@WalnutLaneStrategies.com
(732) 266-8221
Conservation Voters of PA Expresses Disappointment Over Shapiro Extension of Coal Plant Operations on Earth Day
In response to Governor Josh Shapiro’s announcement that the Conemaugh and Keystone coal-fired power plants will remain operational through 2032, Molly Parzen, Executive Director of Conservation Voters of Pennsylvania, issued the following statement:
It is deeply disappointing that during Earth Week — a week intended to celebrate our progress toward a cleaner, healthier future — we are instead seeing a commitment to extend the life of two of Pennsylvania’s largest sources of toxic pollution. While we appreciate the protections against water pollution in this agreement to limit the discharge of toxic metals like arsenic and mercury, these are the bare minimum standards for protecting our local watersheds. They do not change the fundamental reality: Doubling down on coal is the wrong direction for Pennsylvania’s energy future.
Coal is not only a primary driver of the climate crisis, but it is also an increasingly expensive way to power our grid. Continuing to rely on outdated fossil fuel infrastructure places a financial burden on Pennsylvania’s working families and a health burden on the communities that live in the shadow of these plants.
If we want to lower energy rates in both the short and long term, the best path forward is to invest in homegrown, renewable energy like solar, wind, and battery storage. The transition to clean energy is an opportunity to create thousands of family-sustaining union jobs, stabilize our energy prices and protect the health of our children and families. And it’s an opportunity that Pennsylvania is missing out on.
While other states, like Texas, are lowering their energy prices by moving aggressively to bring new wind and solar energy online, Pennsylvania remains stuck in the past. And there is plenty of blame to go around: a grid operator, PJM, that prioritizes dirty energy; the Trump administration that ripped away investments for a clean energy transition; the perpetual gridlock in Harrisburg; and a Governor for whom an “all of the above energy” approach doesn’t seem to include any clean energy.
We urge Governor Shapiro to prioritize a 21st-century energy policy that accelerates our transition away from dirty fossil fuels rather than finding ways to artificially keep them on life support.
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