In an unprecedented move, a Georgia state court has ruled that a new coal plant must limit the amount of carbon dioxide it releases. The decision effectively halts the construction of Dynegy’s Longleaf coal-fired power plant and will have far reaching effects. It could influence permits for all new coal-fired power plants across the country.

This decision is a huge setback for Dynegy. The company is vying to become the next King Coal with plans to build six new coal plants across the country, more than any other company. Co-op America and our allies are fighting Dynegy’s plans from all angles. We're challenging the permits that allow the construction of these plants in the courts. And we’re winning.

At Co-op America we worked with concerned consumers and investors to send over ten thousand messages to Dynegy asking them to cancel their plans to build new coal plants and instead invest in clean energy. Activists from each of the six communities in which Dynegy is planning to build new coal plants protested at the company’s annual shareholders meeting. Inside the meeting, I told the Board of Directors about the serious concerns investors have, but the company persists with its plans to build six new coal plans across the country. Institutional investors have filed shareholder resolutions asking the company to disclose its plans to deal with carbon regulation--or if it has any at all. Dynegy CEO Bruce Williamson has yet to respond.

Since the year 2000 over 150 new coal plants have been proposed by utilities in the United States. Fortunately, the vast majority of Americans are opposed to coal power. 75% of respondents to an Opinion Research Corporation poll indicated they would support a five year moratorium on new coal plants. Local activists and consumers nationwide are speaking out on the issue. In the past 18 months their efforts have resulted in 57 of these proposed coal plants being cancelled, abandoned, or put on hold. Today we will raise this number to 58 as Dynegy’s Longleaf proposal is added to the list.

The tide is turning against coal, but we must keep up the opposition to new plants at all levels. Seeing that public opinion is against them, the coal industry has launched a massive PR campaign trying to brand coal as “clean.” Companies try to make their projects look green by saying they will eventually sequester the carbon. But the technology is unproven and prohibitively expensive. It also fails to address coal’s impacts on the communities in Appalachia which are being destroyed by coal mining.

The industry is ramping up to push through many new plants before carbon regulation takes effect. As community members, consumers, and investors, Americans must continue to oppose them. Only through supporting green energy from renewables -- and opposing dirty energy like so-call “clean coal” -- can we make sure we’ll truly transition to a green economy. Together we can bring an end to coal and reduce carbon dioxide emissions enough to avert the most catastrophic consequences of global warming.

To find out more about how you can take action to stop climate change, visit Co-op America’s climate action website at http://www.climateaction.org/

About Yochanan Zakai

Yochanan Zakai is the corporate responsibility programs coordinator for Co-op America.

This commentary is part of a partnership with Corporate Watchdog Radio and CSRwire. Click here for the audio.