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A child with asthma uses a nebulizer shaped like a fish. The power plant pollution rule proposed by the Trump administration is expected to lead to 120,000 additional asthma attacks annually by 2030 and up to 1,400 additional premature deaths. (Photo: KristyFaith via Flickr.)
The Unequal Health Impacts of Trump's Coal Plant Rule
It could cause up to 1,400 premature deaths per year
Aug 27, 2018
Date on which the Trump administration, as part of its efforts to boost the U.S. coal industry, proposed new regulations for coal-fired power plants that would roll back stricter pollution rules adopted by the Obama administration: 8/21/2018
Number of health and medical groups that issued a joint statement denouncing the Trump plan, saying that it "is not just inadequate, it is dangerous": 10
According to the Trump administration's own analysis, additional number of asthma attacks the new regulations could lead to annually by 2030: 120,000
Of missed school days: up to 64,000
Of premature deaths: up to 1,400
Date on which the Trump administration proposed another rule -- based on industry-backed legislation sponsored by retiring U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) -- to make such public health analyses of proposed rules more difficult to do: 4/24/2018
Amount the energy and natural resources sector contributed to Smith's campaign over the course of his career: over $926,000
Amount it contributed to Trump's 2016 campaign: over $2.3 million
Amount it contributed to all federal campaigns in the 2016 election cycle: $172.5 million
Amount it's contributed at the federal level so far in this election cycle: $88.7 million
Compared to the average per capita income in the U.S., percent less earned by those living within three miles of a coal-fired power plant: over 14
Percentage points by which the population of non-whites living within three miles of a U.S. power plant exceeds their presence in the overall U.S. population: 3
Of the 10 states most dependent on coal for electricity generation, number in the South: 3
In the most coal-dependent state, West Virginia, percent of electricity generated in 2014 by burning coal: 95.6
In Kentucky, the second-most coal-dependent state: 92
Rank of West Virginia and Kentucky respectively among states with the highest poverty rates: 8, 5
Among states with the highest lung cancer incidence rates: 2, 1
Since 2010, percent of the U.S. coal-fired power plant fleet capacity shuttered amid long-term trends that experts expect to continue despite Trump's coal-boosting efforts: 40
Portion of U.S. coal plants currently slated to retire, with more closures expected amid the rise of natural gas and renewables: over 50
Once Trump's proposed rule is published in the Federal Register, number of days the public will have to submit comments: 60
Number of public hearings the EPA plans to hold on the proposal, though it has not yet announced any details: at least 1
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© 2023 Institute for Southern Studies
Sue Sturgis
Sue Sturgis is the Director and regular contributor to the Institute for Southern Study's online magazine, Facing South, with a focus on energy and environmental issues. She is a former staff writer for The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina, and the Independent Weekly in Durham, North Carolina. Sue is the author or co-author of five Institute reports, including Faith in the Gulf (Aug/Sept 2008), Hurricane Katrina and the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (January 2008) and Blueprint for Gulf Renewal (Aug/Sept 2007). Sue holds a Masters in Journalism from New York University.
Date on which the Trump administration, as part of its efforts to boost the U.S. coal industry, proposed new regulations for coal-fired power plants that would roll back stricter pollution rules adopted by the Obama administration: 8/21/2018
Number of health and medical groups that issued a joint statement denouncing the Trump plan, saying that it "is not just inadequate, it is dangerous": 10
According to the Trump administration's own analysis, additional number of asthma attacks the new regulations could lead to annually by 2030: 120,000
Of missed school days: up to 64,000
Of premature deaths: up to 1,400
Date on which the Trump administration proposed another rule -- based on industry-backed legislation sponsored by retiring U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) -- to make such public health analyses of proposed rules more difficult to do: 4/24/2018
Amount the energy and natural resources sector contributed to Smith's campaign over the course of his career: over $926,000
Amount it contributed to Trump's 2016 campaign: over $2.3 million
Amount it contributed to all federal campaigns in the 2016 election cycle: $172.5 million
Amount it's contributed at the federal level so far in this election cycle: $88.7 million
Compared to the average per capita income in the U.S., percent less earned by those living within three miles of a coal-fired power plant: over 14
Percentage points by which the population of non-whites living within three miles of a U.S. power plant exceeds their presence in the overall U.S. population: 3
Of the 10 states most dependent on coal for electricity generation, number in the South: 3
In the most coal-dependent state, West Virginia, percent of electricity generated in 2014 by burning coal: 95.6
In Kentucky, the second-most coal-dependent state: 92
Rank of West Virginia and Kentucky respectively among states with the highest poverty rates: 8, 5
Among states with the highest lung cancer incidence rates: 2, 1
Since 2010, percent of the U.S. coal-fired power plant fleet capacity shuttered amid long-term trends that experts expect to continue despite Trump's coal-boosting efforts: 40
Portion of U.S. coal plants currently slated to retire, with more closures expected amid the rise of natural gas and renewables: over 50
Once Trump's proposed rule is published in the Federal Register, number of days the public will have to submit comments: 60
Number of public hearings the EPA plans to hold on the proposal, though it has not yet announced any details: at least 1
Sue Sturgis
Sue Sturgis is the Director and regular contributor to the Institute for Southern Study's online magazine, Facing South, with a focus on energy and environmental issues. She is a former staff writer for The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina, and the Independent Weekly in Durham, North Carolina. Sue is the author or co-author of five Institute reports, including Faith in the Gulf (Aug/Sept 2008), Hurricane Katrina and the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement (January 2008) and Blueprint for Gulf Renewal (Aug/Sept 2007). Sue holds a Masters in Journalism from New York University.
Date on which the Trump administration, as part of its efforts to boost the U.S. coal industry, proposed new regulations for coal-fired power plants that would roll back stricter pollution rules adopted by the Obama administration: 8/21/2018
Number of health and medical groups that issued a joint statement denouncing the Trump plan, saying that it "is not just inadequate, it is dangerous": 10
According to the Trump administration's own analysis, additional number of asthma attacks the new regulations could lead to annually by 2030: 120,000
Of missed school days: up to 64,000
Of premature deaths: up to 1,400
Date on which the Trump administration proposed another rule -- based on industry-backed legislation sponsored by retiring U.S. Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas) -- to make such public health analyses of proposed rules more difficult to do: 4/24/2018
Amount the energy and natural resources sector contributed to Smith's campaign over the course of his career: over $926,000
Amount it contributed to Trump's 2016 campaign: over $2.3 million
Amount it contributed to all federal campaigns in the 2016 election cycle: $172.5 million
Amount it's contributed at the federal level so far in this election cycle: $88.7 million
Compared to the average per capita income in the U.S., percent less earned by those living within three miles of a coal-fired power plant: over 14
Percentage points by which the population of non-whites living within three miles of a U.S. power plant exceeds their presence in the overall U.S. population: 3
Of the 10 states most dependent on coal for electricity generation, number in the South: 3
In the most coal-dependent state, West Virginia, percent of electricity generated in 2014 by burning coal: 95.6
In Kentucky, the second-most coal-dependent state: 92
Rank of West Virginia and Kentucky respectively among states with the highest poverty rates: 8, 5
Among states with the highest lung cancer incidence rates: 2, 1
Since 2010, percent of the U.S. coal-fired power plant fleet capacity shuttered amid long-term trends that experts expect to continue despite Trump's coal-boosting efforts: 40
Portion of U.S. coal plants currently slated to retire, with more closures expected amid the rise of natural gas and renewables: over 50
Once Trump's proposed rule is published in the Federal Register, number of days the public will have to submit comments: 60
Number of public hearings the EPA plans to hold on the proposal, though it has not yet announced any details: at least 1
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