Chesterfield Decision an Affront to Environmental Justice and Climate Goals

Climate Group Criticizes Short-Sighted Decision to Approve Chesterfield Gas Plant

Controversial plant will further a legacy of environmental injustice in Chesterfield


RICHMOND, VA — Despite years of vocal opposition from nearby residents as well as health, climate, and racial justice organizations, the State Corporation Commission approved today the 944-Megawatt Chesterfield gas plant, clearing the way for its construction. The plant will be constructed on the site of a former coal plant and, despite being billed as a “cleaner” option, will produce more toxic and planet-warming pollutants than the former coal plant, including dangerous substances like fine particulate matter (PM 2.5) and volatile organic compounds, as well as billions of pounds of greenhouse gasses. It will cost ratepayers $8 billion over its lifetime.

 Victoria Higgins, Virginia Director of Chesapeake Climate Action Network (CCAN), issued the following statement:

“This decision flies in the face of an affordable energy future. It flies in the face of a stable climate future. And it is an insult to the injuries that the Chesterfield community has endured from toxic coal pollution over the last 80 years. More than anything, we are heartbroken for the people who will get sick and spend days and dollars in the hospital thanks to this short-sighted decision, children playing at home with their families this Thanksgiving who will develop asthma and inherit an unstable planet. That is the price they will pay to ensure Big Tech can power its data centers and monopoly utilities can profit from them.”

Dominion’s new plant would operate up to 37% of the time, emitting about 4,500,000,000 lbs of CO2-equivalent per year. That’s the equivalent of adding over 470,000 cars to the road. Calculations show this would directly cause more than 6 million square meters of Arctic sea ice to melt each year.

Communities within a three-mile radius of the proposed plant’s location are largely low income and people of color who have suffered from the legacy pollution connected to Dominion’s coal-fired Chesterfield Power Station during its eight decades of operation, yielding additional opposition from the county’s NAACP branch, Friends of Chesterfield, and other community groups active in the area. 

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Chesapeake Climate Action Network is the first grassroots organization dedicated exclusively to raising awareness about the impacts and solutions associated with global warming in the Chesapeake Bay region. Founded in 2002, CCAN has been at the center of the fight for clean energy and wise climate policy in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC.

Contact:  

Victoria Higgins, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, vhiggins@chesapeakeclimate.org, 201-937-7107
KC Chartrand, Chesapeake Climate Action Network, kc@chesapeakeclimate.org, 240-620-7144

With Huge Rate Increases Looming, Regional Grid Members Lean Toward Comprehensive Ratepayer Protections, But Fall Short

In an all-day discussion and voting session debating 12 different proposals, members of PJM Interconnection put the most support behind the most protective plan for ratepayers

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Voting members at Pennsylvania-New Jersey-Maryland Interconnection (PJM), the organization managing the flow of electricity to 65 million people across 13 states and D.C., met yesterday to debate and vote on different options for how to allocate the soaring energy costs associated with data centers. Of the comprehensive proposals, the solution that received the most stakeholder support is the one that was the best for protecting ratepayers. There was one proposal that received more support, but it was a narrow one focused only on Price Responsive Demand. 

The proposal that would fully address the problem posed by 30 gigawatts of data centers seeking to connect to the PJM grid in the coming years was put forward by the Independent Market Monitor. Without any protections, this new data center load could cost the average ratepayer $70 a month. This proposal would not allow data centers to connect to the PJM grid until there is sufficient generation to provide electricity to those facilities. This Bring Your Own Generation (BYOG) approach is broadly supported by stakeholders. Advocates from across the PJM region recently sent a letter to PJM urging support for a Bring Your Own Generation requirement. 

“People should not be forced to choose between energy affordability and reliability, said Quentin Scott, Federal Director of Chesapeake Climate Action Network. “In this instance, the solution that is best for affordability is also best for reliability, and that is why we saw more support for PJM policies that will keep electricity prices low.”

None of the 12 proposals considered by PJM received the necessary support to be declared “passed.” This voting session is meant to inform the final proposal, which will be developed by the PJM Board of Managers in the coming month. 

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Chesapeake Climate Action Network is the first grassroots organization dedicated exclusively to raising awareness about the impacts and solutions associated with global warming in the Chesapeake Bay region. Founded in 2002, CCAN has been at the center of the fight for clean energy and wise climate policy in Maryland, Virginia, Washington, DC and beyond.

Advocates Sound Alarm as Public Service Commission Approves Washington Gas’s Costly 13% Increase on Gas Bills

The rate increase comes as many D.C. residents struggle to pay their gas bills ahead of winter.  

WASHINGTON, D.C. — With one in seven D.C. gas users already behind on their bills, the D.C. Public Service Commission (PSC) yesterday voted in favor of Washington Gas’s 13% gas rate hike that will further raise consumer energy costs ahead of the brutal winter season. The rate increase includes a transfer of $12.5 million from Washington Gas’s $12 billion methane gas pipeline replacement program — one condemned by consumer advocates and environmental groups as costly, ineffective, and unsafe — to base rates, locking in costs for customers for decades. Despite over 10 years of work on this project and repeated increases in gas bills to fund ongoing maintenance, D.C.’s aging gas systems remain leaky and increasingly expensive.

Advocates for consumer rights, public safety, and climate action have repeatedly called for PSC to deny rate increases and require Washington Gas to make improvements. They point out that Washington Gas’s ongoing pipeline overhaul, previously called Project Pipes and then rebranded as District Safe, has actually coincided with a surge in hazardous leaks-rising as much as 25% from 2020 to 2024, according to company data. In one incident in 2024, it took the utility over six hours to respond to a gas odor complaint, further raising alarm over public safety. Meanwhile, the pipeline project continues to run over budget while Washington Gas shareholders see profits rise, and D.C. residents are left to foot the bill. The utility corporation has prioritized revenue generation over safety or affordability, turning public need into private gain while families shoulder the costs.    

In response to yesterday’s decision by the D.C. Public Service Commission, Claire Mills, D.C. Campaigns Manager at the Chesapeake Climate Action Network, released the following statement: 

“The Public Service Commission had a clear choice: protect D.C residents or side with corporate profits. Yesterday, they stood with Washington Gas as the for-profit utility corporation raised gas bills ahead of the brutal winter season and at a time when many households are already struggling to make ends meet. Many D.C. working families simply cannot afford the double-digit increase in average gas bill to almost $100 every month.

“Washington Gas is singularly focused on one thing: keeping its profits flowing. The utility has worked to undermine D.C.’s energy efficiency standards, which save people money, and continues to pass the cost of its gas pipeline replacement program, which has already generated millions of dollars, onto D.C. residents. Meanwhile, the Public Service Commission, responsible for overseeing the utility corporation, has failed in its oversight. With utility regulators asleep at the wheel, it’s time for a legislative solution.  

“Every extra dollar funnelled into Washington Gas’s profit is a dollar taken from families who need to heat their homes this winter. D.C. residents deserve energy solutions that keep the lights on, not bills that force them to choose between warmth and groceries.” 

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Chesapeake Climate Action Network is the first grassroots organization dedicated exclusively to raising awareness about the impacts and solutions associated with global warming in the Chesapeake Bay region. Founded in 2002, CCAN has been at the center of the fight for clean energy and wise climate policy in Maryland, Virginia, Washington, DC and beyond.

Draw the Line: D.C. Advocates Rally Against Washington Gas’s Proposal for $215 Million Methane Gas Pipeline Spending and Rate Hikes

Community members rallied with chalk art and chants outside of D.C. Public Service Commission, urging regulators to reject Washington Gas’s costly Project Pipes proposal

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. — To urge the D.C. Public Service Commission (PSC) to reject Washington Gas’s latest attempted cash grab of $215 million from customers for its gas pipeline replacement program, a coalition of climate, housing, and interfaith advocates rallied today outside the D.C. Public Service Commission. As part of the rally, community members created colorful chalk art messages, calling on the PSC to prioritize the needs of D.C. residents over corporate interests and halt Washington Gas’s rate hikes and reckless pipeline expansion.

Watch the recorded full stream on Instagram HERE.

“At a time when D.C. residents are struggling to make ends meet, Washington Gas wants to pour more than $215 million of customer money into tearing up D.C. streets and replacing methane gas pipelines,” said Claire Mills, D.C. Campaigns Manager at the Chesapeake Climate Action Network. “Despite millions spent already, dangerous gas leaks are still rampant across the District. The Public Service Commission now has a choice: it can either side with Washington Gas’s corporate greed or champion everyday D.C. residents by putting an end to reckless, wasteful spending on methane pipelines.”

Washington Gas’s pipeline replacement program, projected to cost ratepayers $12 billion, has failed to eliminate leaks and protect public safety. The utility’s own data shows that gas leak reports have risen as much as 25% from 2020 to 2024, with Washington Gas even taking more than six hours to respond to a gas odor complaint in October 2024. Rally participants called on the Commission to put D.C. families first, rejecting what advocates describe as another corporate cash grab that fuels profit while putting public health and safety at risk.

“Every fraction of a degree of warming that we can avert matters: it is a difference, in orders of magnitude, of countless human and nonhuman lives,” said Hannah, an organizer with Extinction Rebellion DC. With a federal government increasingly intent on sending us over a climate cliff, it is more important than ever to demand action at the local level. The PSC’s decision can make or break whether DC is a city that meets our climate goals. We are in a climate emergency — we simply can’t afford to bail out fossil fuel companies while the rest of us go down with the ship.” 

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Advocates say Washington Gas’s profit-driven business model incentivizes unnecessary pipeline replacement, piling costs and fees onto customers. Meanwhile, residents are burdened with higher energy bills that could soon skyrocket as the cost of methane gas is expected to nearly double in 2026, according to a recent projection by Morgan Stanley. One in seven D.C. gas users is currently behind on their energy bills as Washington Gas seeks another 12% gas rate hike. 

“At a moment when tens of thousands of D.C. residents are behind on their energy bills, the prospect of handing another several hundred million dollars of ratepayers funds to an investor-owned utility to build fossil fuel infrastructure is galling,” said Matt Sehrsweeney, Co-Chair at We Power DC. “D.C. needs utilities that work for and are accountable to the people of D.C. instead of a handful of wealthy investors, and we need a Public Service Commission that actually defends our interests.”

“Gas leaks, under the streets and in our homes,” said Barbara Briggs, Convener at Beyond Gas DC. “There is no question that we are breathing health-harming methane, benzene (which is highly carcinogenic), and other health-harming components of gas every day. We are also breathing in the pollutants created by burning gas, including nitrogen dioxide, which contributes to asthma, COPD, and lung disease, and may affect children’s cognitive development.  Our families’ health is one more compelling reason we should accelerate D.C.’s transition off the dangerous and outdated use of gas combustion in our buildings and move to renewable, non-combustion energy sources, which are safer and far healthier.”

The rally also drew attention to Washington Gas’s deceptive tactics to keep customer bills high and lock D.C. residents into expensive, polluting fossil fuels for decades to come. While the utility attacks D.C.’s net-zero building standards, it simultaneously launched a greenwashing marketing campaign that positions itself as a champion of net-zero energy homes. Advocates urge the PSC to halt reckless pipeline expansions, reject the rate hike, and stand up to corporate greed.

“The truth is, fuel-burning is not consistent with healthy homes for DC residents or for doing our part to preserve a livable climate,” says Joelle Novey with Interfaith Power & Light (DC.MD.NoVA). “We’re delighted to be working in Montgomery County with Washington Gas on a pilot neighborhood geothermal project, and we invite them to follow our faith communities’ lead by shifting rapidly to get D.C. neighborhoods, too, to be fully electrified and powered by heat pumps and clean energy.”

Watch the recorded full stream on Instagram HERE.

 

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The World Moves Forward Without Trump: From Virginia’s Climate Victories to Global Action at COP30

A New Chapter for Climate Leadership

If you’re like us, it feels like we’re at a turning point.

Day before COP30, activists from the Glasgow Action Team, Ekō, and partners illuminated landmarks across Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with powerful messages. Credit: Glasgow Action Team.

Last week in Virginia, voters just made history — electing the Commonwealth’s largest-ever climate majority and sending a powerful message: climate progress is possible when people organize, vote, and demand it.

Abigail Spanberger’s decisive 15-point victory for governor, alongside Lieutenant Governor-elect Ghazala Hashmi and Attorney General-elect Jay Jones, capped an extraordinary election night. Across the House of Delegates, a wave of clean-energy champions swept into office from Chesapeake to Blacksburg. It was a clean sweep for a clean future — and a stunning rebuke to climate denial and division.

But this moment isn’t just about Virginia. It’s a signal to the world that the movement for climate action is moving forward — with or without Donald Trump.

The World Isn’t Waiting

As world leaders gather in Belém, Brazil, for COP30, the planet faces record heat, growing inequality, and rising urgency. Yet the world is not paralyzed. Countries across the Global South and North are uniting around the idea that physics doesn’t care about politics — and that progress won’t wait for climate deniers.

Even as President Trump refuses to engage with the global process — skipping COP30 and undermining U.S. commitments — nearly 200 nations are continuing to implement the Paris Agreement, build clean-energy industries, and invest in resilience. Clean-energy investment now outpaces fossil fuels two to one, proving that the market, the science, and the moral arc are all bending toward a livable planet.

Day before COP30, activists from the Glasgow Action Team, Ekō, and partners illuminated landmarks across Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with powerful message. Credit: Glasgow Action Team.

From city halls to parliaments, leaders are moving to:

  • Make polluters pay — taxing fossil fuel profits and ending wasteful subsidies.
  • Cancel climate-crushing debt — freeing developing nations to invest in renewable energy and adaptation.
  • Finance the transition fairly — through grants, not more loans.
  • Phase out fossil fuels — fast, fair, and forever.

The message is clear: the climate crisis won’t pause for political gridlock. The world is moving — and the U.S. must choose whether to lead or be left behind.

A Call for Courage at COP30

COP30 in Brazil marks ten years since the Paris Agreement. It’s the moment to recommit to the 1.5°C goal, cement a fair fossil-fuel phaseout, and unlock trillions in climate finance.

And it’s the moment to prove that the world’s cooperation is stronger than one man’s denial. Whether Trump attends or not, the momentum is real — in legislatures, labs, and local communities everywhere.

As Brazil hosts, the world will look for real leadership: protecting forests, ending new oil drilling, and uniting the Global North and South around justice, not delay.

Innovation and Integrity: Exploring “Plan B” with Eyes Wide Open

At CCAN, we’ve always fought for rapid, just decarbonization. That remains our north star. But the planet is warming faster than expected, and even with record investment in clean energy, we may need temporary, carefully researched backup strategies to protect vulnerable communities from runaway heat.

Day before COP30 activists from the Glasgow Action Team, Ekō, and partners illuminated landmarks across Rio de Janeiro, Brazil with powerful messages. Credit: Glasgow Action Team.

That’s why CCAN now supports transparent, equitable research into solar radiation modification — sometimes called geoengineering. The idea: studying whether reflecting just 1–2% of sunlight away from Earth could temporarily cool the planet while we complete the clean-energy transition.

We do not advocate deploying such technology at this time. We advocate studying it safely, democratically, and globally — ensuring that any discussion of geoengineering includes the voices of those most affected, especially from the Global South and environmental-justice communities.

Our guiding principles are clear:

  • No substitute for ending fossil fuels.
  • Full transparency and public participation.
  • Equity and justice at the center of research.

 

You can read CCAN’s Statement of Principles on Geoengineering and learn more about our position and resources on our webpage.

The Path Ahead: Hope, Not Hesitation

This month’s elections in Virginia remind us that people power works. The activism, organizing, and optimism that fueled those victories can ripple outward — to Washington, to Brasília, and to the world stage.

We cannot afford despair or delay. The planet is moving forward — from new climate majorities at home to new alliances abroad.

Trump’s absence from COP30 doesn’t matter. What matters is that the rest of us show up — determined, united, and ready to act.

Now is the time to keep pushing. Pushing for justice in climate finance. For accountability for polluters. And for bold innovation grounded in science and equity. Because the world can — and will — move forward without Trump.

Want to help build that future? Join CCAN’s efforts to fight for climate justice, innovation, and action across Maryland, D.C., Virginia, and beyond.

Become an Action Team Member Today!