This decision marks the second time in a week that the Supreme Court has turned back the clock to darker days that have dangerous implications for public health. The decision to side with polluters over the public will cost American lives and cause an enormous amount of preventable suffering, with the biggest burden falling on low-income communities and communities of color.
Over the last decade, we’ve been able to retire more than two-thirds of U.S. coal plants, while also expanding access to clean, affordable energy. That progress has saved many thousands of lives, and has been driven by communities standing up and demanding leaders put public health above special interests. Coal’s days are numbered, clean energy is the future, and we won’t let this backward-looking Supreme Court decision stand in our way.