Press Releases

Viewing recent news releases in program Energy Justice .

California Attorney General Bonta Headlines COP28 Side Event Sunday

December 2, 2023

DUBAI— California Attorney General Rob Bonta will deliver remarks Sunday at a COP28 side event showcasing key global fights against fossil fuels.

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Press Conference Thursday at COP28 Highlights Need to Phase Out Fossil Fuels

November 29, 2023

DUBAI— Climate advocates will hold a press conference Thursday focusing on the urgent need for a fossil fuel phaseout as the COP28 summit gets underway in Dubai.

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Groups to Rally Wednesday at Tennessee Valley Authority Meeting in Mississippi

November 7, 2023

TUPELO, Miss.― Grassroots, energy justice, youth and frontline communities will face the Tennessee Valley Authority’s board Wednesday to demand that the utility protect workers and communities and transition to 100% renewable energy. The board meets this week to hear public comments and hold its quarterly meeting.

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D.C. Council Urged to Ban Utility Shutoffs, Forgive Utility Debt

September 20, 2023

WASHINGTON— More than 40 groups urged the Council of the District of Columbia to pass legislation that protects households from utility shutoffs due to non-payment and recognize that access to utilities is a human right.

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Lawmakers, Youth, Frontline Advocates Rally Thursday in D.C. to Urge Biden Action on Fossil Fuels

September 11, 2023

WASHINGTON— Members of Congress, youth and climate justice advocates will rally on Capitol Hill Thursday morning to urge President Biden to use his executive powers to stop approving fossil fuel projects, phase out fossil fuels on federal lands and waters, and declare a climate emergency. The rally comes ahead of the March to End Fossil Fuels, Sept. 17 in New York City and the United Nations’ Climate Ambition Summit Sept. 20. It will include colorful banners and signs.

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Biden Administration Urged to Ditch Planned Hydrogen Investments

August 22, 2023

WASHINGTON— A nationwide coalition of more than 180 conservation, Indigenous, faith, labor and social justice organizations urged the Biden administration today to scrap plans to rapidly expand investment in the production and use of hydrogen. The U.S. Department of Energy is championing hydrogen as a supposed climate solution despite the heavy reliance of fossil fuels in its production.

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Inflation Reduction Act Anniversary Raises Urgency for Biden to Declare Climate Emergency

August 15, 2023

WASHINGTON— One year after President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act, the need is more urgent than ever for him to declare a climate emergency, phase out fossil fuels, and fast-track distributed energy systems.

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To Address Deadly Heat, Policymakers Must Ban Utility Shutoffs, Ramp Up Solar, Phase Out Fossil Fuels

July 28, 2023

WASHINGTON— More than 170 social justice, environmental, faith, health and labor groups urged key policymakers today to implement lifesaving bans on utility disconnections, ramp up renewable energy and resilient water systems, and phase out fossil fuels — the root cause of this summer’s extreme heat. The groups say President Biden’s Thursday announcement of limited measures to help communities survive deadly, record-shattering heat ignores the urgent short- and long-term solutions needed to address the climate emergency.

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Lawsuit Challenges TVA’s Backroom Deal, Flimsy Environmental Analysis

June 15, 2023

NASHVILLE, Tenn.— The Sierra Club, Appalachian Voices and the Center for Biological Diversity, represented by the Southern Environmental Law Center, filed a lawsuit this week against the Tennessee Valley Authority over the federal utility’s plans to replace a coal plant with a new gas-fired power plant in Cumberland City, Tennessee.

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500+ International Groups: Biden Must Stop Fossil Fuel Expansion Ahead of September Climate Summit

June 15, 2023

WASHINGTON— More than 500 groups from six continents sent a letter to President Biden today demanding he stop fossil fuel expansion ahead of U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres’s climate ambition summit this September.

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Embattled Puerto Rico Dredging Project Faces Court Hearing

June 2, 2023

WASHINGTON— A federal district court will hear oral arguments Monday in a lawsuit that challenges a proposed U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dredging project in San Juan Bay, Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico residents and environmental groups will hold a rally outside the courthouse before the hearing.

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Congress Urged to Pass Clean Debt Ceiling Bill

May 30, 2023

WASHINGTON— Environmental justice and environmental groups urged Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and members of Congress today to vote on a clean debt ceiling bill without the poison pills that harm disadvantaged communities and the climate.

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Community Groups to Pack Tennessee Valley Authority Board Meetings Tuesday, Wednesday

May 8, 2023

NORRIS, Tenn.― Community groups, coal-ash cleanup workers and others will face the Tennessee Valley Authority’s board at its meetings Tuesday and Wednesday to demand that the utility protect workers and environmental justice communities and transition to 100% clean, renewable energy. The board meets this week to hear public comments and hold its quarterly meeting.

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Lawsuit Challenges California’s Regressive Rooftop Solar Policy

May 4, 2023

SAN FRANCISCO— The Center for Biological Diversity, The Protect Our Communities Foundation and the Environmental Working Group late Wednesday petitioned the California Court of Appeal to review the state’s new rooftop solar policy. The policy, which took effect April 15, significantly slashes the credit new solar users get for sharing their extra solar energy with the grid.

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Congressional Resolution Urges Biden to Declare Climate Emergency, Phase Out Fossil Fuels

May 2, 2023

WASHINGTON— Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) reintroduced a resolution today calling on President Biden to declare a climate emergency and use existing non-emergency powers to lead a multiagency, massive-scale response to the climate crisis.

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Una Demanda Impugna los Fondos de FEMA destinados a Reconstruir la Red Eléctrica de Puerto Rico Basada en Combustibles Fósiles

April 11, 2023

WASHINGTON— Grupos de conservación y comunitarios han presentado hoy una demanda contra la Agencia Federal para el Manejo de Emergencias y el Departamento de Seguridad Nacional acerca de los planes de reconstruir la red eléctrica de Puerto Rico y volver al modelo centralizado de producción de energía basado en combustibles fósiles en vez de invertir en la energía renovable distribuida que necesitan los puertorriqueños.

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Lawsuit Challenges FEMA Funding to Rebuild Puerto Rico’s Fossil Fuel-Dependent Electric Grid

April 11, 2023

WASHINGTON— Conservation and community groups sued the Federal Emergency Management Agency and U.S. Department of Homeland Security today over their plans to rebuild Puerto Rico’s centralized electric grid back to the fossil fuel status quo instead of investing in the distributed renewable energy Puerto Ricans need.

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UN Chief Calls for Halt to New Fossil Fuel Development Ahead of Climate Ambition Summit

March 20, 2023

NEW YORK— The United Nations Secretary General set strong conditions for joining a global climate ambition summit in September, including ceasing all licensing and funding of new oil and gas development and halting expansion of existing oil and gas reserves. This price of entry puts the United States at risk of being shut out of the meeting. The announcement from U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres came as the latest U.N. climate report declared drastic fossil fuel cuts are necessary to avert catastrophic warming.

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California Regulators Urged to Delay Harmful Rooftop Solar Plan

March 15, 2023

SAN FRANCISCO— California regulators should revise a new rooftop solar plan to make solar more affordable for low-income communities, dozens of groups will tell the California Public Utilities Commission at its meeting Thursday. The commission’s plan drastically slashes the credit new solar users would get for sharing their extra solar energy with the grid.

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Report: TVA Clean-Energy Transition Could Create Jobs, Save Billions

March 8, 2023

WASHINGTON— The nation’s largest public utility, the Tennessee Valley Authority, could create thousands of new jobs, improve public health, and help meet President Biden’s climate pledge if it transitions to 100% clean energy by 2035, according to a new study.

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Report: U.S. Utilities Shut Off Power 5.7 Million Times as Shareholders, Executives Raked in Billions

January 30, 2023

WASHINGTON— Utility companies have disconnected U.S. households more than 5.7 million times since 2020 while shelling out billions to shareholders and top executives, according to Powerless in the U.S., a new report from the Center for Biological Diversity, Energy and Policy Institute and BailoutWatch.

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Appeal Targets Environmental Justice Harms From California’s Rooftop Solar Plan

January 18, 2023

SAN FRANCISCO— The Center for Biological Diversity, Protect Our Communities Foundation and the Environmental Working Group today appealed the California Public Utilities Commission’s decision to significantly slash compensation to the state’s rooftop solar customers. The commission’s decision will harm the ability of environmental justice communities to go green.

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Lawsuit Seeks Federal Emergency Management Agency Documents on Fossil Fuel Spending

January 4, 2023

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity sued the Federal Emergency Management Agency today for failing to release public records about the agency’s spending on energy-related projects and assistance to help communities rebuild after disasters. The records should show how much FEMA spends on fossil-fuel related projects compared to renewable energy alternatives.

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Tuesday Morning Rally to Urge Congress to Oppose Manchin’s Dirty Deal

December 6, 2022

WASHINGTON— Members of Congress and climate justice advocates will rally Tuesday morning outside the Cannon House Office Building to oppose Sen. Joe Manchin’s massive giveaway to the fossil fuel industry.

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California’s Revised Net Metering Plan Still Fails Environmental Justice Communities

November 10, 2022

SAN FRANCISCO— The California Public Utilities Commission’s proposed revised state net-metering plan, released today, abandons the hefty solar tax from last year’s proposal but still threatens to put affordable renewable energy out of reach for most communities.

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Lawsuit Seeks TVA Documents on Energy Plans, Fossil Fuel Industry Communications

October 11, 2022

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.— The Center for Biological Diversity sued the Tennessee Valley Authority today for failing to release thousands of pages of public records concerning the agency’s plans to build new gas plants, obstructing the transition to more affordable and resilient renewable energy.

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Manchin Pushes Most Significant Environmental Rollback in Decades

September 21, 2022

WASHINGTON— After weeks of keeping the public and virtually all members of Congress in the dark, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Joe Manchin today released the details of their secret deal that Manchin demanded as payment for voting to pass the Inflation Reduction Act.

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California Should Reject Solar Tax, Boost Solar in Environmental Justice Communities

September 14, 2022

SACRAMENTO— More than 125 California and national climate and equity groups, representing millions of people, called on the governor’s office today to reject the California Public Utility Commission’s proposed solar tax and maintain the state’s solar credit to grow rooftop solar in environmental justice communities.

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Biden Stops Short of Declaring National Climate Emergency

July 20, 2022

WASHINGTON— President Biden announced a series of executive actions targeting the climate crisis today, and while he described the crisis as “an emergency,” he stopped short of the national climate emergency declaration called for by the Center for Biological Diversity and more than 1,200 other groups.

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Lawsuit Seeks Energy Department Documents on Overdue Grid Study

July 20, 2022

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity sued the U.S. Department of Energy today for failing to release public records about the agency’s long-overdue study on energy transmission bottlenecks across the country.

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Congress Urged to Boost Appropriations for Biden’s Clean Energy Orders

July 13, 2022

WASHINGTON— Dozens of environmental and labor groups urged House and Senate leaders to increase funding for President Biden’s historic executive orders to spur domestic renewable energy production under the Defense Production Act.

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Report: TVA’s New Board Members Can Fast-Track Transition to 100% Renewable, Just Energy Future

June 16, 2022

WASHINGTON— The Tennessee Valley Authority’s new board members will have the legal authority to transform the nation’s largest public power provider from a fossil-fuel utility to a renewable energy pioneer, according to a report released today by the Center for Biological Diversity.

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Biden Use of Defense Production Act Signals Pivot on Climate, Renewables

June 6, 2022

WASHINGTON— President Biden signaled a major shift in climate strategy today, announcing executive actions that use the Defense Production Act to manufacture solar panel components, heat pumps, insulation, and grid transformers needed to speed the country toward renewable energy.

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Legal Petition Seeks Federal Trade Commission Investigation of Energy Utility Abuses

May 18, 2022

WASHINGTON— More than 230 consumer, environmental and public interest groups urged the Federal Trade Commission today to investigate the electric utility industry for widespread abuses. These include bribery, fake dark-money campaigns and denying customers access to renewable energy.

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Report: Electric Utilities Shut Off Power 3.6 Million Times While Increasing Payouts to Shareholders, Executives

May 2, 2022

WASHINGTON— Electric utilities have disconnected U.S. households more than 3.5 million times since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, while shareholder returns and executive compensation have skyrocketed, according to Powerless in the Pandemic 2.0, a new report from the Center for Biological Diversity and BailoutWatch.

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500 Global Groups Urge Biden to End Fossil Fuel Era in Response to Russia-Ukraine War

April 27, 2022

WASHINGTON— More than 500 organizations from six continents sent a letter to President Biden and other world leaders today, urging them to speed the end of the fossil fuel era and spur a just and equitable transition to 100% renewable energy.

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Bill Calls for Turbocharging Renewable Energy Manufacturing Under Defense Production Act to Ensure True Energy Security, End Fossil Fuels

April 6, 2022

WASHINGTON— U.S. Rep. Cori Bush (D-Mo.), Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), and Rep. Jason Crow (D-Colo.) introduced legislation today that would require President Biden to use the Defense Production Act to build a renewable energy industrial base to protect communities and achieve energy independence from fossil fuels.

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New Coalition Pressures Tennessee Valley Authority to Cut Fossil-Fuel Emissions, Ramp Up Renewable Energy

April 5, 2022

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.— Dozens of organizations in the Tennessee Valley came together today to launch the Clean Up TVA Coalition, demanding immediate action from the Tennessee Valley Authority to cut carbon emissions and transition to a fossil-fuel-free and just energy future by 2030.

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Progressive Caucus Urges Biden to Declare Climate Emergency, Stop New Fossil Fuel Extraction, Turbocharge Renewables

March 17, 2022

WASHINGTON— The Congressional Progressive Caucus called on President Biden today to declare a climate emergency, ban federal fossil fuel leasing and extraction, and build distributed renewable energy systems under the Defense Production Act.

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Biden Urged to Invoke Defense Protection Act, Resist Shortsighted Domestic Fossil Fuel Policies

March 9, 2022

WASHINGTON— Following President Biden’s announcement Tuesday that the United States will ban all Russian oil imports, more than 200 climate, Indigenous, social justice, religious, and progressive groups sent a letter to the White House today urging the president to invoke the Defense Production Act in order to ramp up the deployment of renewable energy to transition the world off the fossil fuels that are leading to global instability.

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Report Details Key Powers Biden Can Unlock With National Climate Emergency, Echoes Congressional Calls for Declaration

February 23, 2022

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity released a groundbreaking report today outlining the suite of specific powers that President Biden could unlock to fight the climate crisis by declaring a national climate emergency.

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Federal Regulators Urged to End Utility Practice of Funneling Ratepayer Money to Anti-Environment Trade Groups

February 22, 2022

WASHINGTON— More than 300 energy justice, environmental and community groups urged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission today to address utility company behavior that forces millions of customers to finance anti-environment trade groups.

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Congressional Oversight Urged for Tennessee Valley Authority

February 3, 2022

WASHINGTON— Clean energy groups urged a congressional committee today to call Tennessee Valley Authority CEO Jeffrey Lyash before an oversight hearing to answer questions about the massive public utility’s business practices, including its financing of anti-environment trade groups.

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Lawsuit Seeks Records on Federal Loans Fueling Coal, Gas Plants in Arizona, North Carolina

November 18, 2021

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity sued the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Utilities Service today for failing to release public records regarding federal loans to electric generation and transmission cooperatives in Arizona and North Carolina.

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New FERC Commissioner Urged to Prioritize Environmental, Energy Justice

November 17, 2021

WASHINGTON— The Senate voted Tuesday evening to confirm Willie Phillips to fill an open seat on the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Phillips, former chairman of the DC Public Service Commission, will serve a five-year term on the commission, which regulates energy infrastructure including pipelines, liquid natural gas terminals and interstate transmission of electricity, fracked gas and oil.

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COP26 Summit Ends Without Biden Taking Crucial Action on Fossil Fuels

November 13, 2021

GLASGOW, Scotland— The United Nations climate summit ended in Glasgow today with the United States still failing to make crucial domestic and global commitments to address the climate emergency.

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Biden Urged to Prioritize Environmental Justice in Build Back Better Act

October 26, 2021

WASHINGTON— Environmental groups called on Congress and the White House today to prioritize environmental justice in the Build Back Better Act. The Center for Biological Diversity, Food & Water Watch, Friends of the Earth, Indigenous Environmental Network, Oil Change and WE ACT for Environmental Justice say this legislation will be a litmus test of President Biden’s commitment to make environmental justice a crucial pillar of his climate policy.

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Five Executive Actions Biden Must Take As Climate Program Falters in Congress

October 20, 2021

WASHINGTON— As Congress struggles to pass major climate legislation, President Joe Biden can use existing executive powers to take at least five major actions to establish global leadership at the international climate talks in November, according to legal experts at the Center for Biological Diversity.

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Report: Electric Utilities Took $1.25 Billion in Pandemic Bailouts, Shut Off Power to Households Nearly 1 Million Times

September 30, 2021

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity and BailoutWatch today released Powerless in the Pandemic, a report showing that some of the nation’s top utilities received a collective $1.25 billion from last year’s government bailouts while shutting off families’ electric service nearly 1 million times.

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Lawsuit Filed Over TVA’s Millions in Payments to Dirty Energy Lobbyists

September 9, 2021

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.— The Center for Biological Diversity and allies sued the Tennessee Valley Authority today over millions of dollars in ratepayer money the public utility diverts to anti-environmental advocacy groups like the Edison Electric Institute and the Energy and Wildlife Action Coalition. The lawsuit, filed in the Eastern District of Tennessee, seeks an order compelling the utility to address a 2020 petition and supporting evidence seeking to regulate this kind of spending.

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466 Groups Urge Biden to Fill FERC Seat With Environmental, Energy Justice Champion

August 6, 2021

WASHINGTON— More than 460 environmental and energy justice, racial justice, faith and youth organizations from across the United States sent a letter today urging President Joe Biden to appoint a nominee to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission who will champion environmental and energy justice.

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Rep. Tlaib Introduces Utility Debt Cancellation Bill

August 5, 2021

WASHINGTON— Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI) today introduced the Maintaining Access to Essential Services Act, which would provide nearly $40 billion to help wipe away household water, power and broadband debt across the country.

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Energy Department Pushed for Roadmap on TVA’s Transition to 100% Just, Renewable Energy

July 29, 2021

WASHINGTON— More than 80 energy justice, racial justice, faith and youth organizations urged the U.S. Department of Energy today to release a roadmap detailing how the Tennessee Valley Authority will transition to 100% renewable energy by 2030.

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Senators Support FERC Petition to Curb Misuse Of Ratepayer Funds on Anti-Environment Trade Groups

June 24, 2021

WASHINGTON— Five Democratic U.S. senators urged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission today to grant a Center for Biological Diversity petition that would change the way ratepayers are charged for payments utilities make to trade groups obstructing the renewable energy transition.

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Data From 17 States Shows Over 1 Million Power Shutoffs During Pandemic

June 15, 2021

WASHINGTON— More than 1 million household electricity shutoffs have occurred in 17 states since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to an updated analysis of state utility commission data released today by the Center for Biological Diversity. Georgia Power, for example, reported shutoffs equivalent to nearly 8% of its customers.

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TVA’s Plans to Replace Largest Coal Plant With Dirty Gas Meet Opposition

June 10, 2021

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.— The Center for Biological Diversity urged the Tennessee Valley Authority today to replace its largest coal plant with renewable energy sources that will protect the climate and public health. Today’s public scoping comments from the Center oppose the federal agency’s current plans to replace the Cumberland Fossil Plant near Clarksville, Tennessee, with polluting fossil gas.

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Records: More Than 1,000 Loggerhead Sea Turtles Died in Mexico in 2020

June 3, 2021

LA PAZ, Mexico— According to newly obtained official data from the Mexican government, at least 1,088 North Pacific loggerhead turtles died in 2020 in Baja California Sur, Mexico, likely because of entanglement in fishing gear.

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Congressional Resolution Calls for Public Power System to Combat Climate Emergency

June 3, 2021

WASHINGTON— Democratic House Representatives Cori Bush and Jamaal Bowman have introduced a congressional resolution that calls for transforming the country’s largely private energy system into a publicly owned and governed network. The resolution also urges a transition to 100% renewable energy by 2030 and a ban on utility shutoffs, which disproportionately affect low-wealth people and communities of color.

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Documents: TVA Used $3M in Ratepayer Money to Fund Anti-Clean Energy Efforts

May 26, 2021

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.— Four nonprofit organizations called today for a federal investigation of newly uncovered records showing that the Tennessee Valley Authority used $3 million of ratepayer money to fund litigation and lobbying efforts by organizations that fight the EPA’s Clean Air Act rules. TVA is the largest public energy provider in the United States.

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Senate Bill Aims to Protect Americans From Utility Shutoffs, Mounting Debt Crisis

May 20, 2021

WASHINGTON— Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) introduced a bill today that would place a national moratorium on the disconnection of electric, water and broadband utility service due to uncollected payments. An increasing number of people in the country are at risk of losing access to vital utilities, including electricity, water and broadband, as utility debt increases nationwide.

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President Biden’s TVA Nominees Urged to Lead Utility’s Transition to 100% Just, Renewable Energy

May 13, 2021

WASHINGTON— More than 200 energy justice, racial justice, faith and youth organizations are calling on President Joe Biden’s four nominees to the Tennessee Valley Authority board of directors to commit to transitioning the utility to 100% renewable and just energy by 2030. TVA is the nation’s largest public power provider.

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650 Groups Tell Congress: Leave Dirty Power Out of Clean Electricity Standard

May 12, 2021

WASHINGTON— More than 650 national advocacy and grassroots groups sent a letter today calling on Congress to develop a truly clean, renewable and just energy standard for electricity as part of an evolving infrastructure package.

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U.S. Climate Target Falls Short of What Science, Justice Demand

April 22, 2021

WASHINGTON— The new U.S. target for reducing climate-heating emissions 50%-52% by 2030 fails to meet the demands of climate science and environmental and energy justice.

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Legal Petition Aims to Stop Utilities From Forcing Customers to Bankroll Anti-Environment Trade Groups

March 17, 2021

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity petitioned the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission today to prevent electric utilities from forcing customers to finance anti-environment trade groups.

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Data From 10 States Shows Alarming Number of Utility Shutoffs During Pandemic

March 16, 2021

WASHINGTON— Utilities in just 10 states have reported at least 765,262 household power shutoffs since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to an analysis released today by the Center for Biological Diversity. Georgia Power, for example, reported more than 131,000 shutoffs — equivalent to 6% of its customers.

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On COVID Anniversary, Justice Groups Gather in D.C. to Demand Utility-shutoffs Moratorium

March 13, 2021

WASHINGTON— The national #NoShutOffs Coalition and We Power DC mobilized today outside the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services building to call on President Biden and local D.C. officials to impose a moratorium on power, water and broadband shutoffs.

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Environmental Justice Activists to Rally in D.C. for Moratorium on Utility Shutoffs

March 10, 2021

WASHINGTON— One year after COVID-19 was declared a national emergency, the national #NoShutOffs coalition and the D.C.-based We Power DC will mobilize Saturday outside the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to call on President Joe Biden and HHS Acting Secretary Nathan Cochran to issue a nationwide utility-shutoff moratorium. The socially distanced action will also urge local officials to extend the soon-expiring D.C. moratorium on Pepco disconnections.

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Legal Challenge: Duke Energy Plan Would Supersize Climate Pollution, Waste Billions on Unused Power Plants

March 2, 2021

DURHAM, N.C.— NC WARN and the Center for Biological Diversity have filed a legal challenge to Duke Energy’s plan to build scores of gas-fired power plants in the Carolinas even though huge amounts of excess generation already sit unused during the worst winter weather.

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FERC Urged to Open Tennessee Valley Authority to Clean Energy Sources

February 24, 2021

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity has filed a brief before the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, or FERC, in a proceeding that could help push the Tennessee Valley Authority region toward clean, climate-friendly sources of energy. The TVA is a federally owned corporation and the nation’s largest public power provider.

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Dozens of Groups Urge Congress to Support Energy Justice Spending in Next Infrastructure Package

February 18, 2021

WASHINGTON— Twenty-six conservation and energy justice organizations today called for the next infrastructure bill to include support for creating energy microgrids, expanding solar projects in low-wealth communities and increasing funding for rural clean energy programs. This week’s widespread power outages in Texas and Oregon show the nation’s power system is ill-equipped to handle extreme weather due to climate change, which disproportionately harms low-wealth families.

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Thousands Urge Biden to Commit U.S. to Doing Fair Share on Climate

February 17, 2021

WASHINGTON— Just days before the reentry of the United States into the Paris Agreement becomes official, environmental groups delivered a petition to the Biden administration signed by more than 50,000 Americans demanding that the U.S. commit to cutting its fair share of emissions.

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Tennessee Valley Authority Must Commit to 100% Clean Energy, Align With Biden Climate Goal

February 9, 2021

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.— The federally owned Tennessee Valley Authority must align its energy planning with President Biden’s recent executive order requiring that the federal electricity sector completely decarbonize by 2035, energy justice groups said today in a letter to the public utility’s board of directors.

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600 Groups Urge Biden to Halt Water, Electricity, Broadband Shutoffs With Emergency Executive Order on First Day

January 13, 2021

WASHINGTON— More than 600 utility-justice, environmental, racial justice, labor and faith groups delivered a letter today to President-elect Joe Biden and Vice President-elect Kamala Harris urging their administration to halt utility shutoffs nationwide to protect public health.

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Thursday Webinar: Major U.S. Climate Coalition Calculates America’s ‘Fair Share’ of Climate Action

December 3, 2020

WASHINGTON— A new analysis finds that the United States would need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by an amount equivalent to 195% of its 2005 emissions levels by 2030 in order for the U.S. to contribute its “fair share” to global action on climate change.

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Nevada Releases Flawed Climate Strategy

December 2, 2020

LAS VEGAS— Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak and the Nevada Climate Initiative released the state’s climate strategy late Tuesday. This is an important milestone in the state’s march toward decarbonization, as mandated by 2019’s Senate Bill 254.

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State Funding to Assist Families With Rent, Utilities During Covid Runs Out Today

November 12, 2020

RALEIGH. N.C.— As of 6 p.m. today, the roughly $175 million allocated for Gov. Roy Cooper’s HOPE program — which has provided financial relief for renters unable to pay their rent or utility bills — will have run out after less than a month since being announced. To date the program has received nearly 40,000 applications to help households maintain electric, gas and water service and make rent payments.

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Lawsuit Challenges Energy Department’s Failure to Update 25 Overdue Efficiency Standards

November 9, 2020

WASHINGTON— Six environmental and consumer groups are suing the U.S. Department of Energy for failing to review and update energy efficiency standards for more than two dozen categories of consumer and commercial appliances and equipment, including large energy users like refrigerators and water heaters. The 25 overdue standards — the most under any administration — could cost U.S. consumers and businesses billions of dollars and significantly increase climate pollution.

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Lawsuit Seeks Department of Energy Documents on Industry Influence Over Grid Resilience Model

October 15, 2020

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity sued the U.S. Department of Energy today for failing to release records about the agency’s collaboration with utility companies and the fossil fuel industry on an important, publicly funded study about the reliability and resiliency of North America’s power grid.

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Lawsuit Targets Feds’ Failure to Protect Frontline Workers From COVID-19

October 8, 2020

WASHINGTON— Labor unions representing healthcare workers, teachers, transit operators and millions of other frontline workers joined with environmental groups today to sue the federal government over its failure to provide adequate reusable respirators, N95 masks, gloves and other personal protective equipment to these essential workers.

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Millions Demand Congressional Action on COVID Relief Measure

September 14, 2020

WASHINGTON— Dozens of organizations, representing millions of people across the United States, called on Congress today to urgently pass a COVID relief package to prevent unnecessary suffering across the country and to ensure voting rights.

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Legal Petition Demands Tennessee Valley Authority Halt Electricity Shutoffs, Fund Debt Relief

August 25, 2020

WASHINGTON— Dozens of climate-justice organizations petitioned the Tennessee Valley Authority today to immediately impose a moratorium on electricity shutoffs in the region and fund debt relief for its customers.

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Labor, Environmental Groups Urge Emergency Action to Protect Frontline Workers From COVID-19

August 11, 2020

WASHINGTON— Labor unions representing health care workers, teachers, transit operators and millions of other frontline workers joined with environmental groups today to demand that the Trump administration take emergency action to provide adequate masks, gloves and other personal protective equipment to these essential workers.

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Department of Energy Inaction Will Cost Consumers at Least $22 Billion, Spew at Least 80 Million Tons of Carbon Into Air

August 10, 2020

WASHINGTON— Six environmental and consumer groups warned the U.S. Department of Energy today that they will sue the agency if it does not meet its legal responsibility to review and update overdue energy-efficiency standards for an unprecedented 26 consumer and commercial products within 60 days. These products include some of the largest energy users, such as air conditioners, water heaters, refrigerators and clothes dryers.

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Legal Action Challenges Duke Energy’s Buildout of Unapproved Gas-fired Power Units

July 30, 2020

DURHAM, N.C.— Climate-justice groups filed a legal petition with the North Carolina Utilities Commission today asserting that Duke Energy — one of the top polluting U.S. utilities — is violating state law by quietly building large amounts of inefficient gas-burning capacity without commission approval.

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New Data Underscores Urgent Need for Federal Moratorium on Utility Shutoffs

July 23, 2020

WASHINGTON— Senator Tom Carper, Democratic ranking member of the Environment and Public Works Committee, released a report today that revealed only 10 U.S. states and Washington, D.C., have statewide moratoriums on water, power and gas utility shut-offs that protect all or the vast majority of residential ratepayers in effect right now. The report provides a comprehensive state-by-state analysis of state protections against water, power and gas utility disconnections.

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California Data Show Regular Truck Crashes, Deaths Along Proposed ExxonMobil Oil-trucking Route

July 23, 2020

SANTA BARBARA, Calif.— There’s been a large truck collision every week, and almost two fatalities per year, on average over the past five years along the California highways where ExxonMobil wants to send up to 70 oil tanker trucks a day, according to California Highway Patrol data analyzed by the Center for Biological Diversity.

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9th Circuit Court Urged to Reject Arizona Utility’s Discrimination Against Rooftop Solar

July 8, 2020

PHOENIX— Five climate and energy-conservation groups took legal action this week in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals to challenge an Arizona public power utility’s discrimination against rooftop-solar customers.

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Solar Co-op Launches for Tucson Residents to Go Solar Together

June 16, 2020

TUCSON, Ariz.— The nonprofit group Solar United Neighbors announced the launch of the Tucson Solar Co-op today, in partnership with the Center for Biological Diversity and Physicians for Social Responsibility Arizona.

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450 Environmental, Energy Justice Groups Urge Federal Commission to Reject Threat to Solar Net Metering

June 15, 2020

WASHINGTON— More than 450 environmental and energy-justice, faith and labor groups urged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission today to reject the New England Ratepayers Association’s petition seeking federal jurisdiction over state solar policies.

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Legal Intervention Fights Shadowy Organization’s Effort to Gut Solar Net Metering

June 11, 2020

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity filed a brief today urging the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to reject a pending petition aimed at gutting net metering for distributed-solar power by putting it under federal control.

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Tucson Solar Co-op to Help Area Residents Go Solar

June 1, 2020

TUCSON, Ariz.— The Center for Biological Diversity and Solar United Neighbors (SUN) are partnering to bring a solar cooperative to Tucson. The co-op opens today, and the groups will kick off the project with a June 8 webinar.

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Virtual Town Hall to Explore Why Congress Must Fight for Power, Water, Broadband for All

May 12, 2020

WASHINGTON— A virtual town hall featuring teachers, advocates, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) will lay out why Congress should include a national moratorium on utility shutoffs in the next round of COVID-19 relief legislation.

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Louisiana Groups Urge Delay in Power Project for Industrial Polluters, Citing COVID-19 Concerns

May 6, 2020

ST. JAMES PARISH, La.— The coalition opposing Formosa Plastics’ massive proposed petrochemical complex in St. James Parish, Louisiana, has requested a delay in upgrading electric transmission lines to serve that project and future industrial polluters. The coalition’s letter cites current public health warnings about COVID-19 and damage to wetlands.

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Seven State Bans on Electricity Shutoffs Expiring Soon

April 30, 2020

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity released an issue brief today analyzing state orders suspending electricity disconnections due to the COVID-19 state of emergency. The brief found that 42% of states currently have no legally binding protections against electric utility shutoffs. Moreover, seven existing state bans on electricity shutoffs just expired or are set to expire in the coming weeks, raising the percentage of states with no legal shutoff moratoria to 56%.

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Public Records Sought on Anti-Solar Group’s Efforts to Gut Net Metering

April 28, 2020

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity filed a Freedom of Information Act request today seeking the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s communications with a secretive front group that’s demanding a nationwide ban on state retail net-metering programs for distributed solar energy.

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Briefing to Announce Launch of National Peoples’ Mobilization to Save Lives, Prevent Second Wave of COVID-19 Deaths

April 23, 2020

WASHINGTON— The COVID-19 Emergency Response Group is mobilizing as the fourth branch of government, the Peoples’ Branch, to save as many American lives as possible and keep families and communities safe from COVID-19. The group is driving for the passage of legislation: a COVID-19 Peoples’ New Deal.

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In Next Coronavirus Rescue Bill, 830 Groups Urge Congress to Halt Electricity, Water, Broadband Shutoffs

April 13, 2020

WASHINGTON— More than 830 utility-justice, environmental, faith, civil-rights and labor groups sent a letter to Congress today calling for the next stimulus package responding to the coronavirus to include a moratorium on electricity, water and broadband utility shutoffs.

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In Coronavirus Crisis, 575 Groups Urge Halt to Electricity, Water Shutoffs

March 19, 2020

WASHINGTON— More than 575 utility justice, labor, faith, consumer and environmental groups urged state governors, mayors and utility regulators today to put a moratorium on electricity and water-utility shutoffs in response to the coronavirus crisis and resulting job losses.

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Legal Petition: TVA Violating Customers’ Rights by Giving Millions to Dirty Energy Lobbyists

February 20, 2020

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity and other organizations petitioned the Tennessee Valley Authority today to stop giving millions of dollars in ratepayer money to anti-environmental advocacy groups like the Edison Electric Institute and Energy and Wildlife Action Coalition.

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Environmental Group Launches Energy Justice Program

January 27, 2020

WASHINGTON— The Center for Biological Diversity launched a new Energy Justice Program today focused on driving the urgent transition to a clean energy future to protect wildlife and people.

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