By: Pita Juarez, Arizona Field Organizer, Moms Clean Air Force
Date: July 8, 2025
About: Environmental Protection Agency Docket ID No. EPA-HQ-OAR-2025-0124-0001
To: Environmental Protection Agency
Good morning, and thank you for the opportunity to speak today. My name is Pita Juarez. I live in Phoenix, Arizona. I’m an aunt to 10 nieces and nephews, and I serve as the field consultant for Moms Clean Air Force—a national community of more than 1.6 million parents united to protect our children from the dangers of air pollution and the growing threat of climate change. As someone who deeply loves this community and my family, I’m here because the stakes are personal. I strongly oppose EPA’s proposal to repeal carbon pollution standards for power plants.
Power plants are one of the largest sources of carbon pollution in the country We know that power plants are responsible for roughly a quarter of climate pollution in the U.S. Approximately 60% of power generation comes from burning fossil fuels like coal and natural gas. Here in Arizona, we see the effects of global warming every summer and it’s largely driven by greenhouse gas emissions or “climate pollution” from the fossil fuel industry. In Arizona, fossil fuel power plants also contribute to the high levels of air pollution we face, pollution that is linked to everything from asthma attacks to heart disease.
Climate change is threatening our health and well-being in numerous ways. Greenhouse gas pollution from sources like power plants is heating up our planet and intensifying dangerous extreme weather. Impacts of climate change include more severe heat waves and more dangerous wildfires, and in recent years we’ve seen wildfires impact some of the most beautiful landmarks in Arizona. Both heat and wildfires worsen air pollution, and this directly harms families like mine: Several children in my family struggle with asthma and on days when the air quality is bad, they struggle just to breathe. No child should have to miss school, sit out from playing outside, or land in the emergency room because the air they breathe is unsafe.
The recent EPA rule to reduce greenhouse gas pollution from power plants is a crucial step toward protecting the health of our families and the planet. This is about more than numbers, it’s about our children’s futures. It’s about preventing asthma attacks, keeping our communities healthy, and addressing the climate crisis head-on. Strong, enforceable standards on carbon pollution from power plants are essential to protect the most vulnerable among us, especially kids. Today’s children will live through at least 3 times as many climate disasters as their grandparents, and future generations will live with the consequences of the climate decisions we make today.
We need climate action that puts people over polluters. I urge policymakers to support these protections, not just for the environment, but for every family in Arizona and across the country who deserves to breathe clean air. We have a moral responsibility to act now to protect the well-being of our children and future generations.
Thank you.