Power plants still have to take steps to make major cuts in their carbon output even though the regulation dictating the changes is being challenged in court, according to Reuters.
Under the regulation, all previously existing coal-fired power plants and new natural gas-powered plants have to install new (and expensive) technology to control emissions or shut down.
This will help the government reach its goal of reducing dirty emissions by 90% by 2032.
According to the U.S. Energy Information Association, power plants that use coal as fuel release 2.3 pounds of dirty emissions per kilowatt-hour. The United Nations explains that this pollution helps speed changes in the climate that lead to higher temperatures around the world, more drought in more places, warmer oceans, rising sea levels, fewer animal species, and more severe storms.
Some people think that these things won't affect them, for a variety of reasons. Some live far from the coast. Others live in areas where they appreciate warmer temperatures, or where they don't get to interact with animals much.
However, sooner or later, changes in the climate will lead to less food being available, more disease, an increase in air pollution, and higher rates of poverty. These changes will reach everyone, eventually, even if they don't seem to be affecting daily life now.
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One of the best ways to stem the tide of these effects of a changing climate is to make choices now that limit the amount of carbon that enters the atmosphere, and that's what this ruling did.
Vickie Patton, a lawyer for the Environmental Defense Fund, said, "Americans across the nation are suffering from the intense heat waves, extreme storms and flooding and increased wildfires caused by climate pollution," per the Associated Press.
A lawyer for the Natural Resources Defense Council added that the original ruling "set reasonable standards for utilities and states to cut their carbon pollution," also per the Associated Press.
If you agree with the court that the current ruling does "no immediate harm" and may, in fact, do a lot of good, there are steps you can take on a personal level, too. You can find out what public transportation options are available in your area, understand your carbon footprint, or even simply talk to your friends and family about what is going on with the environment and how it affects their daily lives.
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