Thomas Cmar

Senior Attorney Clean Energy Program

Thomas Cmar, Senior Attorney, Earthjustice

Media Inquiries

Kathryn McGrath
Public Affairs and Communications Strategist
(202) 516-6932
kmcgrath@earthjustice.org

On Social Media

@thom_cmar

LinkedIn

Bar Admissions

IL, MA (inactive), NY

Pronouns

he / him

Thomas Cmar is a senior attorney for the Clean Energy Program, and is based in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Thomas first joined Earthjustice in 2012 after working for six years as an attorney with the Natural Resources Defense Council, where he specialized in energy and water issues. Thomas was deputy managing attorney of the Earthjustice Coal Program from 2018 to 2021. In 2021, Thomas moved back home to Ohio and spent a year working in private practice before rejoining Earthjustice in 2022.

Thomas has also worked as an adjunct lecturer in the Environmental Policy & Culture Program at Northwestern University, as an attorney with the International Labor Rights Fund in Washington, D.C., and as a law clerk for United States Magistrate Judge Debra Freeman of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. He is a 2004 graduate of Harvard Law School and has a B.A. in Politics & Philosophy from the University of Pittsburgh.

The Latest from Thomas Cmar

Bitcoin mining machines
March 12, 2024

Cryptocurrency Miners Need to Report their Energy Use

The U.S. Energy Information Administration raises concerns about energy-intensive cryptocurrency mining operations, will seek comments on reporting requirements.
February 28, 2024

In the News: Denton Record-Chronicle

Texas bitcoin miners don’t have to report energy usage yet; Denton touts selling renewables

“The EIA collects this type information from every energy user in the U.S., so there is no question that they have the authority to collect this information. It’s just a question of whether this industry is willing to cooperate by making this information publicly available to the extent it should be publicly available.”
February 27, 2024

In the News: Fortune

Texas Bitcoin miner sues feds over energy survey

"The EIA clearly has authority to collect this type of information from crypto miners, as it does from many other industries. The reporting burdens here are minimal, and this is information that the public has the right to know."
August 29, 2023

In the News: Lexington Herald-Leader

Deal crucial to building Kentucky’s largest cryptomine rejected by state regulators

“Hardworking people shouldn’t have to pay higher utility bills so that a cryptocurrency company can get millions in subsidies they don’t deserve.”
June 14, 2021

In the News: E&E News

Coal plants rush to flush under Trump EPA rule

"This is really just the leading edge of what will become a much broader wave of power plants seeking to extract as much of an advantage as they can out of the handouts that the Trump EPA gave them."
A coal-fired power plant in central Wyoming.
November 2, 2020

Stopping the EPA’s Attack on Clean Water Protections

Earthjustice files a new lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's giveaway to the coal power industry.
Power plants are the largest source of toxic water pollution in the U.S., but the EPA has issued new regulations that will require power plants to use affordable, state-of-the-art technologies to reduce their pollution.
September 30, 2015

EPA Updates 30-Year-Old Water Quality Standards

After 30-plus years of inaction, the EPA recently issued requirements that power plants use affordable, state-of-the-art technologies to reduce their pollution—or eliminate it where feasible.
Power plant next to a stream
June 17, 2015

Don’t Let Dirty Industries Sell Our Health Down the River

The EPA—prompted by an Earthjustice lawsuit—is considering stronger rules to keep coal-burning power plants from polluting our rivers, lakes and streams.
Power plant near St Joseph MO
January 30, 2015

Cleaner Energy is Coming to Missouri as Utility Announces Coal Plant Retirements

Kansas City Power & Light announces plans to retire three power plants and reduce coal-generating capacity by nearly 20%.
A mother and child near an industrial plant.
August 7, 2014

Politics and Lobbying Influence EPA Rules on Coal Ash Wastewater

ProPublica investigation shines a light on political interference in regulatory rulemaking