Statement of Nathaniel Keohane
President, Center for Climate and Energy Solutions
June 11, 2025
On the EPA repeal of the carbon pollution standards for power plants:
“EPA’s proposed repeal of carbon pollution standards is climate denialism and poor economics dressed up as energy policy.
“EPA’s mandate under the Clean Air Act is to promote the public health and welfare. Repealing the carbon pollution standards would do the opposite, increasing carbon dioxide emissions by 123 million metric tons a year by 2035.
“In addition, today’s announcement makes zero economic sense, because it attaches precisely zero value to the benefits of a safer climate. Americans are experiencing for themselves the costs that climate change is already imposing on communities and businesses around the country, in the form of wildfires, heat waves, drought, storm surges, and other extreme weather events – costs that are climbing every year. As a result, cutting carbon emissions is a winning proposition for the economy. The EPA’s own analysis estimated that the existing greenhouse gas standards for power plants will deliver $370 billion in net economic benefits over the next twenty years, in the form of healthier communities and a safer climate.
“Today’s proposal, however, simply pretends that damages from climate change don’t exist. In doing so, it fails to account for the hundreds of billions of dollars of benefits that would come from cutting pollution – and disregards decades of climate science and economics as well as plain common sense.
“Building an energy infrastructure to deliver the reliable, affordable clean power that consumers and businesses demand requires forward-thinking policy, grounded in economic reality and market dynamics. This proposal takes us backward. It introduces uncertainty in the electric power industry that is the backbone of American energy growth and risks raising electricity costs for families and businesses.
“America’s economic future depends on our ability to meet our growing appetite for energy while reducing the carbon emissions that are heating the planet. Far from supporting ‘energy dominance,’ this proposal will make America less healthy, less secure, and ultimately less prosperous.”
To reach a C2ES expert, contact Alec Gerlach at press@c2es.org.