Dive Brief:
- The U.S. Treasury said on Tuesday it is planning to limit global development banks from funding coal-fired power plants in foreign countries.
- The Treasury said it would, however, support coal plant funding for the world's poorest countries with no feasible alternative.
- The Treasury said it would support financing for coal plants with carbon capture and sequestration technology in all countries. Coal advocates maintain this technology is not yet commercially available and thus unfairly punishes the utility and coal industries.
Dive Insight:
This is all part of President Obama's Climate Action Plan to phase out fossil fuels over the long run. Obama wants the U.S. to lead the world's transition to a clean and sustainable energy future. The U.S. is leading by example through the White House's push for EPA carbon emission regulations on new and existing power plants.