On May 16, Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe signed an executive directive requiring state officials to formulate regulations limiting electricity sector carbon emissions. The move reportedly is a response to President Trump’s recent order to U.S. EPA to reevaluate the Clean Power Plan.
“As the federal government abdicates its role on [climate change], it is critical for states to fill the void,” McAuliffe said in a statement accompanying the order.
The order requires the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality to propose a “carbon pollution trading-ready” regulation to the state’s Air Pollution Control Board by December 31.
