2023 Annual Report

On the Ground and in the Highest Offices, Mothers Fight for Climate Safety, Clean Air, And Environmental Justice

Thanks to the continued support of our members and donors, Moms Clean Air Force played an instrumental role in catalyzing historic air pollution and climate change rulemaking advances in 2023.

The last 12 months were big for clean air action in the U.S. Between January and May, EPA put forth seven proposed rulemakings on climate and air pollution, and Moms and our members worked around the clock to ensure all final protections are the strongest possible for our health and climate stability.

On December 2, we saw the first fruits of our labor when EPA Administrator Michael Regan announced the finalization of federal methane rules for new and existing oil and gas operations. This is the most significant climate protection ever instituted by EPA and marks a momentous achievement for Moms Clean Air Force, which has been fighting for more stringent methane protections for more than 10 years. Our messages highlighting the health impacts of methane and other pollutants released during oil and gas operations helped mobilize the public and all levels of government to support robust protections.

We are grateful for our members’ commitment to ensuring the health of all communities, and we are pleased to share highlights of our progress in 2023 that you helped make possible.

2023 BY THE NUMBERS

• Moms’ online advocacy generated nearly 151,000 messages to Congress and regulatory agencies on key climate and human health issues.
• Moms made 192 legislative visits advocating for commonsense climate investments, protections from plastic incineration pollution, electric school bus funding, and more.
• Moms’ advocacy for clean air and climate solutions has been featured in more than 2,580 news stories in media outlets nationwide.

Legislative and Regulatory Campaigns for Change

Moms Clean Air Force mobilizes caregivers who are committed to protecting their children’s health. We organize our members to meet with elected officials, participate in public hearings, submit comments to public dockets, make phone calls to lawmaker offices at strategic moments, and call for the action we need through traditional media outlets and social media channels. Moms made progress on a range of pressing issues in 2023.

Advancing EPA rulemakings for clean air and climate protections

In the first half of 2023—and in response to the urgings of Moms and our members—EPA opened a near-continuous stream of public hearings and comment periods on several rulemakings that we fought for all year long. These rulemakings would set strong air and climate pollution standards for mercury, methane, soot, petrochemical, power plant, and tailpipe pollution. Together, these standards could significantly slash emissions of planet-warming pollution while protecting the health of millions of vulnerable people in the U.S. This was the moment of opportunity and action we had been working for for more than a decade, and Moms showed up in full force to engage on all these issues.

Following are some highlights of our engagement:

Oil and gas methane protections: Moms Clean Air Force has fought for oil and gas methane protections for more than a decade, and our hard work is now paying off. On December 2, EPA Administrator Regan announced the finalization of new EPA methane rules for new and existing oil and gas operations. Since the rules were first proposed in 2021, Moms Clean Air Force members have submitted more than 49,000 public comments voicing our support and provided 100 testimonies on this issue. We met with officials at EPA and the Office of Management and Budget, along with key congressional offices, about strong methane protections.

The final rules mark a significant win for global climate and community health. EPA estimates that between 2024 and 2038, the new standards will reduce methane pollution from covered sources by 80%. They will also reduce enough ozone pollution to prevent up to 97,000 cases of asthma and 35,000 lost school days a year. Thank you for helping make this huge win possible!

Chemical manufacturing (petrochemical) standards: Plastics and chemical manufacturing are among the heaviest polluting industrial sectors in the country—a major threat to community health and climate stability. In April, EPA proposed new standards to reduce the hazardous air pollution released by more than 200 of the largest, most toxic chemical manufacturing facilities in the U.S. At EPA’s chemical manufacturing virtual public hearing in May, Moms testified to show how petrochemicals have put their communities at risk and demand change. Our advocacy is focused on ensuring these standards include monitoring along the fence lines of these facilities, flare efficiency and monitoring, leak detection and repair protocols, and the removal of existing exemptions for startup, shutdown, and malfunction. A final rule is expected in March 2024.

Vehicle standards: Transportation is the largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S., accounting for roughly 27% of all emissions. In April, EPA released two proposals outlining stronger protections from tailpipe pollution: one for air and climate pollution from cars and light-duty trucks and one for climate pollution from heavy-duty vehicles. Moms joined Administrator Regan at EPA Headquarters for the agency’s announcement of the new proposals. In May, more than 60 Moms staff and members testified at EPA’s virtual public hearings to call for even stronger car and heavy-duty truck standards, and we submitted nearly 10,000 comments to share the same message. Moms is calling on the Biden administration to finalize the strongest possible protections to put the U.S. on a path toward a zero-emission transportation sector. We expect EPA to announce final tailpipe pollution rules in March 2024.

Power plant (carbon) standards: Fossil-fueled power plants are one of the largest sources of climate pollution in the U.S., generating roughly 25% of the country’s total climate-warming gases. During EPA public hearings on June 13–15, more than 60 Moms members and allies spoke up in favor of comprehensive standards that would cut climate-warming pollution from fossil-fuel-fired power plants, and we sent nearly 9,000 comments for strong rules to EPA. Additionally, Moms National Field Manager Ali Simpson, as well as state coordinators from Michigan, Arizona, and Georgia, flew to Washington, DC, last summer to drum up congressional support for the power plant standards. In the fall, we hosted press conferences in states across the U.S., including an event with Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib in Michigan, to urge EPA to swiftly finalize the strongest possible power plant rules. We expect EPA to announce a final rule in April 2024.

Mercury Air Toxics Standards (MATS): Moms has been fighting to cut dangerous mercury pollution from coal-fired power plants for more than a decade. Mercury is found in the air we breathe and the foods we eat, but there is no safe level of mercury consumption. Thanks in part to our tireless efforts, mercury pollution has dropped by 86% since the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards were implemented in 2012. Mercury protections have clearly made a difference, yet much work remains to be done. There are still many coal plants in the U.S. spewing significant amounts of mercury into the air and putting families’ health at risk.

In May, Moms seized yet another opportunity to speak out on this issue. Forty-seven Moms staff and members testified at EPA’s virtual public hearing on the proposal to strengthen MATS, and we submitted just under 5,000 written comments in support of stronger standards. Stronger mercury standards will be critical for protecting children’s developing brains from mercury and other toxic heavy metals, and they will help hold coal plants accountable for their pollution. We expect EPA to announce a final rule in the spring of 2024.

Soot (fine particle pollution) standards: In early 2023, EPA proposed new standards for soot, a.k.a. fine particle pollution or PM 2.5, to help protect the health of communities. The proposed standards will strengthen the annual average limit for particle pollution but fall short of the strongest limits recommended by scientific guidance. In February, 60 Moms members testified at EPA’s public hearing to urge the agency to set the strongest possible standards, and we submitted more than 11,500 comments in favor of a strong rule.

Last fall, Moms defended EPA’s authority to set health-protective soot rules before Congress. Moms’ National Health Equity Manager, Almeta Cooper, was selected to be a witness before the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s Environment, Manufacturing, and Critical Minerals Subcommittee hearing on the proposed rule. She and a group of Moms staff and volunteers from the DC area firmly defended EPA’s authority by shining a spotlight on the ways soot pollution harms human health.

In October, Moms staff and organizers from across the country met with the White House Office of Management and Budget to advocate for the strongest possible soot protections. Our stories emphasized the health impacts of soot on particularly vulnerable populations, including children and communities of color. We expect EPA to announce a final rule in January 2024.

Toxic Substances Control Act: In July, Moms joined our partners at EPA Headquarters to call on the agency to ban the carcinogen vinyl chloride. National Health Equity Manager Almeta Cooper spoke at the press conference about the harmful impacts of this substance on our health, and following the event, Moms and our partners delivered more than 27,000 petitions in favor of a ban to EPA. In early December, Moms and partners presented the agency with an additional batch of petitions, bringing the total to nearly 33,500. On December 14, EPA announced that it will review five chemicals for regulatory action under the Toxic Substances Control Act. These five chemicals, which include vinyl chloride, are used to make plastic and other petrochemicals. In response to this development, Moms released a statement calling on EPA to protect the health of our families and put an end to the production and use of vinyl chloride.

Ensuring the success of EPA’s Clean School Bus program

In 2021, Moms Clean Air Force played an instrumental role in ensuring the passage of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL), which allocated $5 billion over five years to help school districts purchase zero- and low-emissions school buses. This historic investment will vastly increase the number of electric school buses (ESBs) transporting students in the U.S. while creating new clean energy jobs—a win-win for healthy communities and the economy. Since this bill’s passage, Moms has helped ensure ESB funding is implemented at the state level, where it will deliver clean air and climate benefits to the communities that need them most.

In April 2023, EPA announced a round of ESB grant funding totaling $400 million. Following the announcement, Moms quickly mobilized and urged congressional representatives to alert their school districts about the opportunity. We also reached out directly to qualifying school districts in states where we have field organizers working on the ground. We expect awardees to be announced in early 2024.

In the second half of 2023, Moms focused on spreading the word about a new round of Clean School Bus Program rebate funding totaling $500 million. Moms’ organizers in 13 states mobilized volunteers to contact their school districts, superintendents, and school boards to encourage them to apply for these funds. These organizers are also reaching out to school boards, Associations of Superintendents, Parent Teacher Associations, and Transportation Management Organizations to share our fact sheet Reasons to Roll With Electric School Buses and information about available funding.

Additionally, Moms played a key role in encouraging regional EPA offices to establish clean school bus coalitions to coordinate planning around receiving new buses, answer community questions, and relay community feedback on the program to the agency. These coalitions will be critical in ensuring the EPA Clean School Bus Program is successful and effectively meets the needs of communities. One important outreach tool for these coalitions is state-based webinars for interested schools that feature EPA staff, state government officials, and Moms organizers. In December alone, Moms participated in seven of these webinars, including an event for Arizona and Nevada school districts featuring EPA Region 9 staff.

Advocating for stronger protections from petrochemical pollution

The train that derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, on February 3 was carrying multiple petrochemicals used to make plastics and paints that are known to be harmful to human health. One of these petrochemicals was vinyl chloride, a colorless gas that has been linked to cancers and can be deadly. Those located closest to the East Palestine petrochemical disaster are suffering the greatest health impacts and may continue to do so for decades. The rapid expansion of the petrochemical industry across the Ohio River Valley region, Texas, and Louisiana means that more trains carrying toxic chemicals could be traveling through communities, putting more families at risk.

In March, Moms Clean Air Force had a strong presence at the Environment and Public Works Senate Committee hearing on “Protecting Public Health and the Environment in the Wake of the Norfolk Southern Train Derailment and Chemical Release in East Palestine, Ohio.” Moms brought the only three East Palestine community members who were present at the hearing, and we also brought moms from other states who have been impacted by petrochemical pollution. At the hearing, Moms called on Congress to hold companies responsible for polluting communities and putting the health of children and families at risk. We were featured in more than 400 East Palestine-related media hits, including MSNBC’s Morning Joe, CNN’s The Lead with Jake Tapper, and CBS Mornings. Our message was consistent across these platforms: the East Palestine derailment was caused by an underregulated and poorly monitored petrochemical industry that has sickened generations of people on the Gulf Coast and is now expanding into the Ohio River Valley. Congress and EPA must do everything in their power to prevent petrochemical disasters and protect people from petrochemical pollution.

Moms Clean Air Force is also doing everything we can to fight against the American Chemistry Council’s (ACC) promotion of incineration as a new way to mitigate the plastic pollution crisis. ACC is greenwashing this plastic incineration process by calling it “chemical recycling” and “advanced recycling,” though no plastic is actually getting recycled. The ACC seeks to build at least 150 new advanced recycling facilities across the U.S., and they are currently working to persuade Congress, states, and the public that these incinerators are a form of clean, climate-friendly recycling. Using deceptive tactics, the plastics industry is promoting this approach as a means to justify its plans to triple plastics production by 2050 and avoid regulatory oversight. Over the last year, Moms has taken critical action to prevent the buildout of incineration facilities and protect communities across the nation from their toxic pollution.

• In early 2023, Moms and partners had several meetings with EPA senior leadership, demanding that the agency affirm that the processes taking place within “chemical recycling” facilities are indeed a form of incineration. We urged EPA to withdraw the Trump administration’s proposed rule exempting plastic incinerators (i.e., advanced recycling) from regulation under the Clean Air Act. We asked instead for plastic waste incinerators to continue to be regulated as solid waste incinerators. Our members have been petitioning EPA to protect our communities from plastics incineration pollution, and we were pleased by the agency’s announcement that it is withdrawing the Trump proposal. We remain vigilant because EPA still appears to be deliberating on this issue. Regulation at the federal level is critical because 24 states have already passed laws that classify plastic waste incinerators as “manufacturing” or “recycling.”
• The ACC is aggressively lobbying federal lawmakers with the message that the burning of plastics in “chemical recycling” facilities should not qualify as incineration. ACC is circulating draft legislation on Capitol Hill, and it has reportedly secured Republican support in the House of Representatives. ACC’s next goal is to find a Democratic sponsor. In response, Moms has started a second round of 60+ congressional meetings to help key Democratic offices understand that chemical recycling is a polluting incineration process that must continue to be regulated under the Clean Air Act—as it has been for 30 years.
• Moms is leading a comprehensive educational campaign to help members of Congress and the general public understand the true risks of plastic incineration. In October, Moms shared our “Chemical Recycling” 101 fact sheet with more than 275 congressional staffers. We also continue to drive membership petitions to Congress and EPA, and during the Halloween season, we launched a video titled “Advanced Recycling Is Scary” in English and Spanish. We recently launched another video called “The Truth About ‘Advanced Recycling.’”

Expanding the Power of Moms

Climate change and air pollution are a threat to everyone, but communities of color and low-income communities face the greatest risks. They are hit “first and worst” by climate change, and they are disproportionately exposed to harmful air pollution. Moms’ environmental justice outreach programs engage deeply with families that bear the heaviest burdens of air pollution and climate impacts.

Environmental Justice and Community Health Equity

Moms’ Environmental Justice and Community Health Equity program is amplifying and raising awareness about and taking action against the disproportionate health impacts of climate change and air pollution on low-income communities of color. Following are key achievements from the past year:

• To highlight the connection between climate change and health equity, Moms launched a series of national health equity webinars about the health implications of soot pollution and about climate change and mental health.
• Moms co-authored and amplified a faith-based letter, Call for Climate Justice, urging the Biden administration, elected officials at the state and federal levels, health care professionals, and church leaders to implement climate solutions for the benefit of environmental justice. This initiative is mobilizing women of color faith leaders across the country—and especially in the key states of Georgia, Virginia, and Pennsylvania—to examine the intersections of climate, justice, and health.
• Moms National Field Manager and EcoMadre Liz Hurtado joined EPA’s Community, Equity and Resiliency Virtual Open House for a discussion about the importance of centering equity in the transition to electric vehicles. Expert panelists shared insights on how to ensure that the benefits of EV infrastructure are accessible to all, including communities that have historically been marginalized.

EcoMadres

Moms’ EcoMadres program is educating and mobilizing Latino communities—communities that are disproportionately impacted by air pollution and extreme heat—to fight for clean air, climate change solutions, and protections from toxic chemicals. In 2023, EcoMadres participated in nearly 60 events, many of which were focused on uplifting the voices and environmental contributions of Latino communities in celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month. The following are highlights of EcoMadres programming:

• In April, EcoMadres Carolina Peña-Alarcón and Erandi Treviño participated in the inaugural Hispanic/Latino Environmental Justice Roundtable hosted by the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, where stakeholders discussed the impacts of environmental issues on Latino communities.
• In May, EcoMadre Liz Hurtado spoke at an event hosted by Too Small to Fail—the Clinton Foundation’s early childhood initiative. The event, titled “The Implications of Climate Change: Strategies to Support Young Children’s Healthy Development,” brought together leaders from philanthropy, media, health, climate, early childhood, government, and business to elevate the urgency around the disproportionate effects of climate change on young children.
• At the Raizado Festival in Aspen, Director of EcoMadres Isabel González Whitaker joined Latinos from across the country to highlight issues impacting Latino communities. Isabel spoke on a panel titled “The Original Sustainers: Latinx Community Leading to Preserve the Planet.”
• In October, Isabel González Whitaker had a climate chat with Tennessee State Representative Justin Pearson to discuss the importance of centering the growing Latino population in the environmental justice movement. EcoMadres’ tweet about this conversation generated over 43,000 views.
• EcoMadre Carmen Cortez is a school bus driver fighting for a transition to an all-electric bus fleet across the country. In a Vox article, Carmen explains why this shift is so important, saying she got behind electric buses to “help improve the health of the students in my district, my own health, that of my community, and of the planet.”

Indigenous Engagement

Moms Clean Air Force continued building and deepening relationships with Indigenous groups and activists in 2023. The following are highlights of our Tribal community outreach and advocacy:

• At the beginning of the year, we collected more than 2,600 signatures on a petition to Congress advocating for increased Clean Air Act funding for Tribal air programs. Moms also provided support to the newly formed Tribal Clean Transportation program, and over the coming year, we will help the program achieve its goals related to clean transportation engagement, deployment, and policymaking.
• Moms’ work on Tribal clean air and Indigenous sovereignty was showcased at the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum in an exhibit titled “To Live and Breathe: Women and Environmental Justice in Washington, DC.” The interactive exhibit features DC-based environmental justice initiatives that collectively tell the story of how women are driving progress on environmental justice. The portion of the exhibit highlighting Moms Clean Air Force features photos from Moms events in and around DC, as well as the front page of our Indigenous air quality fact sheet.
• Moms Colorado Field Organizer, Shaina Oliver, participated in a panel at the 2023 Transatlantic Forum for Environmental and Climate Justice at Georgetown University in Washington, DC. The topic was “Just Transition,” and Shaina spoke about her experience as a member of the Navajo/Dine and the importance of centering community needs when advocating for a just transition from fossil fuels to clean energy.

Media Coverage

Sharing our messages through the media is key to our overall success and impact. Through media, we can reach more of the general public and put pressure on government agencies and elected officials to pass laws and regulations that protect families from air pollution and climate change. In 2023, Moms issued more than 100 press releases and had 2,680 media hits in more than 700 different outlets, including CNN, CBS News, Good Morning America, the Washington Post, The Hill, and La Opinión. Together these media stories yielded millions of views.

Moms staff and organizers were featured in People Magazine twice, with one article highlighting our Arizona organizer and her experience living with high levels of air pollution and triple-digit temperatures, and the other article serving as a profile piece about our organization’s origin and impact.

Our reach on social media is expansive and growing. Our X (Twitter) impressions surpassed 5.5 million, with an engagement rate of 2.8% (higher than the industry average for our account size), and our Facebook and Instagram accounts reached 47 million people and 5 million people, respectively.

For a complete list of our media coverage in 2023, please see our press page.

LOOKING AHEAD

Thanks to the generous and steadfast support of members like you, Moms is pushing EPA to finalize strong, life-saving rulemakings on key pollutants, and we anticipate several important climate and clean air wins to come through in the first half of 2024. Many of the new standards that we expect to be finalized in the coming months are protections that Moms has been demanding—and testifying and petitioning on—for nearly a decade. While we anticipate that an unfriendly Congress will try to block these rules whenever possible and try to defund EPA, Moms will fight back as always, doing everything in our power to ensure these rules go through.

In addition to helping secure the finalization and implementation of strong new climate and air pollution rules, Moms will focus on the following priorities in 2024:

• Following the finalization of EPA methane rules covering oil and gas operations, Moms will work to hold states accountable for strong implementation plans, starting with two early adopter states: Pennsylvania and Ohio.
• We will continue engaging on implementation of federal climate investments, ensuring funding is implemented equitably—through EPA’s Clean School Bus program, environmental justice grants, and air monitoring programs—to improve air quality in the communities that need it most. We will also work to highlight the success of federal climate investments at the regional level through public education, storytelling, and press events.
• We will continue tackling air and climate pollution from the petrochemical industry and work to block any laws that seek to exempt plastics incineration from EPA regulation. This will include countering the American Chemistry Council, which has been aggressively lobbying for a bill in Congress promoting plastics and so-called “advanced recycling.”
• As the 2024 election grows nearer, Moms will ramp up engagement on our Get Out the Vote campaign by raising greater awareness with diverse audiences about the strong climate progress that has been made over the past three years under the Biden administration.

With Thanks

The generous support of members like you is critical to the work we do, helping drive lasting positive impacts at the local, state, and federal levels. Thanks to you, parents and caregivers across the country have the tools they need to demand regulatory and legislative action that will protect the health of their communities and ensure a safer future for all children. With your help over the past few years, we have made meaningful progress on some of the most urgent issues facing our country. This is a time to celebrate our achievements while acknowledging that the work continues, and there is more we must do to ensure new rules, laws, and funding are implemented in the most equitable and effective ways possible. We invite you to continue supporting us to help ensure a healthier and safer future for our children and families—especially those on the frontlines of climate change and toxic air pollution.