STATEMENT: Trump’s Coal Plan Harms Americans by Raising Energy Prices and Increasing Pollution

Washington, D.C. — Today, President Donald Trump is expected to announce that he plans to invoke the Defense Production Act to fund coal facilities and plant upgrades as well as a coal export terminal on the East Coast. In response, Shannon Baker-Branstetter, senior director for Climate and Energy Policy at the Center for American Progress, issued the following statement:

President Trump’s continued attempt to bail out the coal industry endangers public health and leaves Americans footing the bill for more expensive power. Coal use has been declining for years due to market forces; it just can’t compete with other forms of energy that are less expensive to produce, like wind and solar. The main impact of burning more coal will be to worsen climate change and increase deadly pollution that causes higher rates of cancer and lung disease. And part of this funding will go toward building a facility that would export coal to other countries. That means there is no benefit at all to U.S. consumers while the export terminals would burden communities next to the port with deadly soot pollution. This agenda serves only the fossil fuel industry and does nothing to help Americans struggling with rising utility and energy costs.

Related resource:

• “5 Hidden Ways the Government Rigs the Market in Favor of Fossil Fuels” by Alia Hidayat, Sophie Conroy, and Gianna Sala

For more information or to speak with an expert, please contact Sam Hananel at [email protected].