Clearing the Air
Air pollution is among the most serious threats to our national parks and monuments. Dirty air ruins scenic views, harms wildlife and historic sites, and affects the health of visitors.
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Regional Haze
Clear Solutions for Parks
Millions of people visit U.S. national parks and wilderness areas each year to see some of the most awe-inspiring views in the world. Visitors imagine national parks as having the…
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Air & Climate Report
Polluted Parks
Nearly every national park is affected by air pollution and climate change in adverse ways. NPCA’s “Polluted Parks” report evaluates damage from air pollution at 417 national parks based on…
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Press Release
Colorado Air Quality Regulator Reverses Decision to Retire Coal Plants Early
Air Quality Control Commission sides with corporate polluters over decision to force the early retirement of three coal plants
More about Air
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Read more about Climate Change Biggest Threat Facing National Parks; NPCA Supports Selection of Gina McCarthy for Domestic Climate Advisor
Press Release Climate Change Biggest Threat Facing National Parks; NPCA Supports Selection of Gina McCarthy for Domestic Climate Advisor “With our public lands and waterways at the forefront of the climate crisis, they offer one of our country’s best defenses for addressing these threats. Protecting, restoring and preserving them is key to combating it." -- NPCA President and CEO Theresa Pierno
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Read more about The Undoing Of Our Public Lands and National Parks
Policy Update The Undoing Of Our Public Lands and National Parks President Trump and the officials he has appointed have systematically undermined, degraded and outright attacked the laws that protect our public lands, the agencies that manage them and the irreplaceable resources these places safeguard for the American people.
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Read more about Regional haze plan calls for earlier retirement for Colorado coal-fired power plants
Press Release Regional haze plan calls for earlier retirement for Colorado coal-fired power plants National Parks Conservation Association and Sierra Club proposal reduces greenhouse gas emissions and other pollutants, improving public health and visibility at parks
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Read more about New Virtual Workshop Connects University Science Students With Policy to Support Indiana Dunes National Park
Press Release New Virtual Workshop Connects University Science Students With Policy to Support Indiana Dunes National Park Today's young scientists are at the forefront of informing policy that will protect Indiana Dunes and all of our national treasures.
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We love all of them and we hope they are all still around when our four grandkids are old enough to visit them. — John & Cathy
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Read more about President-Elect Biden to Prioritize Conservation and Climate Change, Benefitting National Parks Across the Country
Press Release President-Elect Biden to Prioritize Conservation and Climate Change, Benefitting National Parks Across the Country "Together, we can make a real difference for our communities, our parks and our environment." - Theresa Pierno
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Read more about EPA and State Regulators Slash Plan to Limit Coal Pollution in Utah
Press Release EPA and State Regulators Slash Plan to Limit Coal Pollution in Utah Latest business-as-usual plan by EPA and Utah officials fails to limit haze-causing emissions
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Read more about Conservation and Public Health Organizations Demand Clean Air, Environmental Justice for San Joaquin Valley
Press Release Conservation and Public Health Organizations Demand Clean Air, Environmental Justice for San Joaquin Valley The state of California is failing in its duty to clean up San Joaquin Valley air, when climate action is more necessary than ever.
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Read more about NPCA, Earthworks and Clean Air Task Force File Legal Actions Against Administration for Gutting Methane Regulations
Press Release NPCA, Earthworks and Clean Air Task Force File Legal Actions Against Administration for Gutting Methane Regulations Today, we are taking action to hold EPA accountable to its mission to protect the health of our environment and people.
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Read more about Position to EPA on Air Quality Standards Proposed Rule
Policy Update Position to EPA on Air Quality Standards Proposed Rule NPCA, along with partners, sent the following letter to EPA Administrator Wheeler regarding the National Ambient Air Quality Standard for Particualte Matter proposed rule.
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Read more about Administration Guts Methane Rule, Allowing More Air Pollution to Harm National Parks and Communities
Press Release Administration Guts Methane Rule, Allowing More Air Pollution to Harm National Parks and Communities The administration is gutting commonsense regulations, threatening the air we breathe and wasting taxpayer money, all while ignoring the climate crisis.
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Read more about Air Pollution in Colorado: Our Lives and Parks at Risk
Advocacy in Action Air Pollution in Colorado: Our Lives and Parks at Risk Colorado suffers from a serious and growing air quality problem, failing year after year to meet federal standards for air that’s healthy and safe to breathe. That needs to change.
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Read more about Our Southwestern National Parks Deserve Cleaner Air
Advocacy in Action Our Southwestern National Parks Deserve Cleaner Air Clean air is within reach for our Southwestern national parks.
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Read more about Clean Air for Parks Fact Sheets
Fact Sheet Clean Air for Parks Fact Sheets In the fight for healthy air, laws limiting haze pollution are powerful tools—but we need to act now to sharpen them. To win the fight for clean and healthy air, deploying all means to lower pollution—like ozone and particulate matter—is a necessity.
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Read more about Fighting for Clean Air in our National Parks
Advocacy in Action Fighting for Clean Air in our National Parks Air pollution is one of the most serious threats facing national parks, harming visitors’ health, clouding scenic views and altering our climate.
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Read more about California's National Parks: Struggling for Clean Air
Advocacy in Action California's National Parks: Struggling for Clean Air It might come as a surprise that California’s crown jewel national parks — Sequoia, Kings Canyon, Joshua Tree and Yosemite — struggle with some of the dirtiest air of any parks in the nation.
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Read more about Ozone Fact Sheet
Fact Sheet Ozone Fact Sheet Ozone threatens the health of park visitors and contributes to the disease and death of park species such as the black cherry tree in the East and aspen and ponderosa pine in the West. National park ecosystems across the country are already showing damage from ground-level ozone pollution.
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Read more about Forward, Not Backward
Fact Sheet Forward, Not Backward Climate change is the greatest threat facing our national parks and people across the world. But the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is taking strident measures to strip the U.S. of necessary rules to curb climate pollution.
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Read more about 10 Ways to Be a Park Advocate
Resource 10 Ways to Be a Park Advocate Want to be an advocate for parks, but don't know where to start?
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Read more about Defending Clean Air Protections for Parks
Advocacy in Action Defending Clean Air Protections for Parks Air pollution is among the most serious threats facing national parks, threatening visitors’ health, clouding scenic vistas and altering our climate. To restore clean air to national parks, we work to defend the clean air laws that protect them.
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Read more about Join Us
Video Join Us Our national parks preserve some of the most inspiring places and stories. These places belong to us all. They deserve to be celebrated and protected. It’s up to us to ensure that America’s favorite places have clean water, clear air and healthy wildlife.
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Read more about Learn More About Seeing Clearly in America’s National Parks
Map Learn More About Seeing Clearly in America’s National Parks How dirty air harms parks and what you can do to help.
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Read more about Share Your Story
My Park Story Share Your Story Let our leaders know why clean air matters to you. Share your experience!
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Read more about National Park Groups Thank President for Methane Announcement
Letter National Park Groups Thank President for Methane Announcement New rules will help protect parks from the impacts of climate change.
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Read more about Polluted Parks: How Dirty Air is Harming America’s National Parks
Report Polluted Parks: How Dirty Air is Harming America’s National Parks “Polluted Parks” graded the pollution-related damage in the 48 national parks required by the Clean Air Act to have the highest possible air quality.
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Read more about Best Available Retrofit Technology at the Cholla Power Plant
Letter Best Available Retrofit Technology at the Cholla Power Plant On behalf of National Parks Conservation Association and Sierra Club, Earthjustice respectfully submits the following comments regarding the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality’s (ADEQ) proposed Best Available Retrofit Technology (BART) “reassessment” for the Cholla Power Plant.
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Read more about Virginians for Healthy Air Newsletter
Report Virginians for Healthy Air Newsletter Virginians for Healthy Air is a network of Virginia businesses, civic groups, and nonprofit organizations that share the vision of healthy air for the Commonwealth and for Virginia’s national parks, including Shenandoah.
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Read more about Clean Air Health Findings in the Southwest
Report Clean Air Health Findings in the Southwest A report on clean air health findings in the Southwest by Dr. George Thurston.
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