Media Center

New York States Moves 70 x 30 Climate Goal Forward

October 15, 2020 Press ReleaseNew York

ALBANY, N.Y. – The New York State Public Service Commission today issued an order that implements a key component of the nation-leading Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLPA) – obtaining 70 percent of New York’s electricity from clean energy…

Governor Newsom Announces Executive Order to Address Biodiversity Crisis

October 7, 2020 Press ReleaseCalifornia

Sacramento - Governor Gavin Newsom issued an executive order announcing new actions in the fight against climate change and to protect biodiversity. The Executive Order includes a statewide “30 by 30” conservation goal, which was the focus of Assembly bill…

EPA Rollback Boosts Toxic Air Pollution and Health Risks Including Cancer

October 1, 2020 Press Release

WASHINGTON – The Environmental Protection Agency is finalizing an environmental rollback that ends enforcement of a longstanding “once in, always in” toxic air pollution policy, which required industrial facilities to implement major pollution control measures as long as the plant…

New Report: Equitable Pathways to Meet Colorado's Climate Goals

September 28, 2020 Press Release

DENVER — A new report released today shows how Colorado can reach its ambitious climate goals in a way that cuts dangerous pollution, particularly in communities disproportionately impacted by air pollution. The findings highlight the need for swiftly powering the…

EPA’s New Drinking Water Rule Leaves Millions of Toxic Lead Pipes in the Ground to Contaminate a Generation of Children

September 27, 2020 Press Release

WASHINGTON – A draft of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) final revision of the Lead and Copper Rule (LCR) revealed today indicates the agency will significantly weaken public health protections against lead contaminated drinking water being delivered to millions…

PA Governor Wolf Vetoes Legislation to Block Climate Action

September 24, 2020 Press Release

HARRISBURG, P.A. – Governor Tom Wolf today vetoed House Bill 2025 which sought to strip the state Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) of its existing legal authority to regulate carbon pollution across all sectors and block Pennsylvania’s participation in the…

Gov. Whitmer Issues Most Ambitious Action on Climate in the Midwest, Advocates Call for Additional Community Centered Climate Solutions

September 23, 2020 Press Release

LANSING, MI – Gov. Whitmer issued an executive order today that commits Michigan to the most ambitious path to combat the climate crisis in the Midwest to date. The order sets a goal of dramatically cutting carbon pollution and achieving…

PA Takes Major Step to Join RGGI in Fight Against Climate Crisis

September 15, 2020 Press Release

HARRISBURG, P.A. – The Pennsylvania Environmental Quality Board (EQB) today voted to advance a formal rulemaking process that would put Pennsylvania on the path to joining a regional cap-and-trade program.

Trump Administration Disregards California’s Climate Crisis

September 10, 2020 Press Release

WASHINGTON – While millions of Californians suffer from the effects of massive wildfires that have blotted out the sun and rained ash on communities across the state, the Trump administration late last night blithely dismissed any compelling need for the…

NRDC’s Gina McCarthy: THRIVE Plan Invests in Equity, Health, Jobs, and the Economy

September 10, 2020 Press Release

WASHINGTON - House and Senate members today introduced the THRIVE resolution, laying out a legislative agenda to Transform, Heal, and Renew by Investing in a Vibrant Economy.

EPA’s Policy of Ignoring Pollution Comes to an End

August 31, 2020 Press Release

WASHINGTON – Today marks the end of an Environmental Protection Agency non-enforcement policy that gave industries permission to stop monitoring and reporting pollution for reasons related to COVID-19—with no requirement to notify EPA or the public. This unnecessary policy put…

In Major Reversal, Trump Administration Stalls Pebble Mine

August 24, 2020 Press Release

WASHINGTON – The Army Corps of Engineers today said the Pebble Mine project in Bristol Bay, Alaska, would inflict “unavoidable adverse impacts” and lead to “significant degradation” to water and marine life. The agency gave its backers 90 days to…

Groups Sue Trump Administration Over Harmful NEPA Rules

August 6, 2020 Press Release

WASHINGTON – A broad coalition of justice and environmental groups sued the Trump administration today over its regulations that would gut environmental reviews and silence community input.

NRDC Report: How Climate Crisis Threatens Worker Health and Safety, Both Outdoors and Inside

July 28, 2020 Press Release

WASHINGTON – A new report warns that the health and safety of workers across the country, both indoors and outdoors, is increasingly at risk from excessive heat, increasing air and water pollution, spreading infectious diseases, extreme weather, challenges to their…

National Crises Point to Climate Solutions Addressing Racial, Economic and Environmental Justice

July 21, 2020 Press Release

WASHINGTON— This year’s global pandemic, recession and national uprising against racist police violence highlight the stark need for the country to address climate change with broad solutions that put racial, economic, and environmental justice at their core, the co-authors of…

President Trump Silences Public to Help Polluters

July 15, 2020 Press Release

The Trump administration is set to issue rules today that could curtail the public’s right to have a say in the pipelines, highways, incinerators, and other government-approved projects that will define their neighborhoods for decades to come.

With Atlantic Coast Pipeline Canceled, Time to Pivot to Clean Energy

July 5, 2020 Press Release

WASHINGTON - Faced with rising costs and opposition, the builders of the proposed Atlantic Coast Pipeline reportedly are canceling the project that would have traveled 600 miles from West Virginia through Virginia into North Carolina.

Richmond Removes Symbols of Racial Injustice

July 2, 2020 Press Release

RICHMOND, VA – Confederate statues, at long last, are being removed from Monument Avenue in the city of Richmond, ending public display of symbols of racial injustice.

House Panel Unveils Bold Climate Plan

June 30, 2020 Press Release

The House of Representatives’ Select Committee on Climate Crisis, Chaired by Rep. Kathy Castor, today unveiled its bold plan to address climate change. It comes the same week the House is voting on the Moving Forward Act, a landmark infrastructure…

Study: Climate Crisis Disproportionately Harms Black Mothers and their Infants

June 18, 2020 Press Release