NAACP Director of Climate Justice Programs Jacqueline Patterson said, “The Cross-State Air Pollution Rule will improve health conditions and save thousands of lives, while holding power plants accountable to their neighbors in nearby states."

Added Patterson, "Before this rule, these neighbors had no recourse against out-of-state pollution, and suffered real health consequences. Similarly, many low-income communities and communities of color are disproportionately affected by pollution from nearby coal plants, even while these groups use far less energy than the national average. We will continue to raise awareness of this inequity and urge coal plants to become better neighbors.”

The NAACP Climate Justice Department is in the middle of a multi-state teach-in series in communities with the worst-ranked plants. The report, “Coal Blooded: Putting Profits Before People” will analyze sulfur dioxide (SO2) and Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) emissions in conjunction with demographic factors –race, income, and population density – to rank the environmental justice performance of the nation’s 431 coal fired power plants.

The report is a joint production of NAACP, Little Village Environmental Justice Organization (LVEJO), the Indigenous Environmental Network and lead author and researcher Adrian Wilson, and will serve as a launching point for NAACP’s campaign to address the issue of the pollution from coal fired power plants and disparate impacts on communities of color.