By: Luz Drada, Program Coordinator, Moms Clean Air Force
Date: June 14, 2023
About: Environmental Protection Agency Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2023-0072
To: Environmental Protection Agency
Good morning. Thank you for the opportunity to allow me to speak today. I am Luz Drada, the Program Coordinator at Moms Clean Air Force and its Latino engagement program, EcoMadres. We are a community of over 1.5 million moms and dads united to protect children from air pollution and climate change.
Fossil fuel power plants are a significant source of climate pollution. As we all know, climate change impacts our health and the health of our planet. Fossil-fueled power plants are responsible for almost 25% of the climate pollution generated by the US.
I support the Carbon Rule and am calling on EPA to finalize the strongest possible standards to help protect our families from harmful air pollution that worsens climate change and human health.
As a mother of a six-year-old, I have a moral obligation to him and generations to come to work for a more sustainable planet. Like many little boys with Hispanic roots, Dominick dreams of being a soccer player. And he repeats to me that he wants to be like Lionel Messi. He practices soccer in his everyday life. And I have not yet found the right words to explain to him the damage that all past generations have done to the planet, and we continue to do. And for that reason, he can’t go outside and practice some days because I know firsthand that air pollution and extreme weather can harm his health and development.
Today’s kids will face many more climate disasters than their grandparents, and that’s unfair. The climate crisis will hit kids, but they are not in a position to make decisions. While the people who can make the change happen will not face the consequences. We need to do something now!
We need stronger standards for carbon emissions from power plants because we have a moral obligation to act on climate for the health of today’s children and future generations. EPA’s proposed standards are a critical step in reducing the climate-warming greenhouse gas emissions that harm our health in many ways. If these regulations are implemented as proposed, they will help to reduce global warming and pollution. Also, it will provide benefits for public health. In 2030 alone, the proposed standards would prevent premature deaths and a significant reduction in hospital and emergency room visits.
Once again, I support the Carbon Rule, and I am calling on EPA to finalize the strongest possible standards to help protect our families from air pollution that contributes to climate change.
Thank you for your time and your work today.