Renewable energy is healthier choice

I write in support of the Environmental Protection Agency's proposed 'Clean Power Plan” to cut carbon pollution from power plants for the first time.

Since power plants produce nearly 40 percent of the carbon pollution that is disrupting our climate, it's critical that action be taken immediately. While we have safeguards against other pollutants, power plants are allowed to dump unlimited amounts of carbon pollution into our air fueling climate change.

Infants and children generally breathe more rapidly than adults and have underdeveloped immune systems and organs, and thus have a higher rate of exposure. They are more susceptible to the negative effects of air pollution from dirty power plants and other sources.

The National Climate Assessment states that 'climate change threatens human health and well-being in many ways, including impacts from increased weather events, wildfire, decreased air quality, threats to mental health, and illnesses transmitted by food, water, and disease carriers such as mosquitoes and ticks.”

Those who have a vested interest in dirty power plants are digging in to block the proposed carbon pollution rules in Congress and the courts. Yet we in Iowa know that renewable energy in the form of wind or solar can provide a healthier life and is tied with prosperity for Iowans as we move into the new technologies for the 21st. century. Each state needs to achieve its own standards; Iowa will not have a difficult time meeting ours. And our children and grandchildren will breathe easier.

Barbara Schlachter

Iowa City