Apple says repealing Obama’s Clean Power Plan is bad for business

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apple park
Apple is serious about protecting the environment. The new Apple Park campus gets all its power from renewable energy.
Photo: Duncan Sinfield

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Trump administration wants to get rid of the Clean Power Plan, a move that Apple now publicly opposes.

A statement from Apple to the agency this morning asserts that the Obama era plan to require reductions in greenhouse gases from power plants spurs investment in clean energy. Repealing it makes companies less competitive in these technologies.  

“Repealing the Clean Power Plan will subject consumers like Apple and our large manufacturing partners to increased investment uncertainty,” Apple said in this morning’s filing, according to Reuters.

The EPA enacted the Clean Power Plan in 2015, but it has never gone into effect because it’s tied up in the courts. The goal is to reduce carbon emissions from power plants by 32 percent by 2030, but the plan faces legal challenges from over half of state governments, as well as many industry groups.

Apple believes in clean power

Apple takes clean power and protecting the environment seriously. The company touts that “100 percent of the electricity we use to power our data centers, and 96 percent used by our facilities worldwide, comes from energy sources like solar, hydro, and wind power.” Its new Apple Park campus gets all its power from renewable energy.

Lisa Jackson is the company VP for environmental initiatives. She was also head of the EPA from 2009 to 2013, and surely had a role in crafting the Clean Power Plan. All this means the commentary released today opposing its roll-back almost certainly originated with her.

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