The following statement is from Earthjustice senior legislative representative Sarah Saylor regarding efforts by 13 Democratic senators to ensure that the Senate’s energy and climate change bill builds on existing Clean Air Act protections and requires coal-fired power plants to meet modern emissions standards.

“Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and 12 other senators are standing up for Clean Air Act protections and making sure that the new climate and energy legislation is effective in reducing our country’s emissions and safeguarding our future.

“Forthcoming energy and climate legislation represents an historic opportunity for our nation to move forward toward clean energy and away from the dirty energy policies of the past that threaten our national security, our economy, and our climate.

“Coal-fired power plants currently account for more than a third of U.S. carbon emissions. It will be impossible to reduce global warming pollution by 83 percent by 2050 without reliable emissions cuts from the coal electric sector.

“We applaud Senator Menendez and the 12 other senators on this letter for speaking out against creating loopholes for the nation’s biggest global warming polluters, which would derail the United States’ attempt to combat climate change and build a clean-energy future for this country.

“We hope other senators hear their message and work together on passing a comprehensive and aggressive clean energy and climate change bill that leads the United States and the rest of the world well into the 21st century and beyond.”