The science is clear: we cannot keep funding dirty energy for the sake of our communities’ health, safety, and planet. Just this summer, Wisconsinites have suffered asthma attacks from polluted air, debilitating extreme heat, and power outages from flash floods. It’s time for Wisconsin to be free from outdated fuels that pollute our air and water, and thankfully, the Empowering Rural America program within the Inflation Reduction Act is giving us a chance to do just that. Through this program, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is offering $9.7 billion to rural electric co-ops for their transition to clean energy. 

 

This is great news, but at the same time, the USDA is still considering a subsidized loan worth hundreds of millions of dollars for Dairyland Power Co-op to build the proposed Nemadji Trail Energy Center (NTEC) fossil gas plant, which would be located in Superior, Wisconsin. The EPA has estimated that this 600 MW fossil gas plant would cause around $2 billion in climate damages from greenhouse gas emissions if built.
 

This project is a major contradiction in the face of crystal clear science. As Wisconsinites and health advocates, we are tired of seeing our neighbors and patients struggle to choose between paying rising healthcare bills or high electric bills as fossil fuel prices climb. The fossil fuel industry is making record profits at the expense of our health and we refuse to bankroll it. We are ready for a brighter future for our families and climate.  
 

Join us in sending a strong message to the USDA and the Biden-Harris Administration that uplifts our opposition to federal subsidies for fossil fuels. Together, we can make this a turning point for Wisconsin and communities across our country. We can ask the USDA’s Rural Utility Service to deny the loan, especially since the USDA is currently offering renewable energy project funding for co-ops like Dairyland.