Coal is still used to generate almost 60% of Missouri’s electricity, according to federal data, and none of the state’s utilities scored above the national average in the Sierra Club’s new Dirty Truth Report.
The report grades 75 utilities on plans to phase out coal and gas and shift to clean energy by 2035. The national average was just 15 of 100. The group said utilities are stalling on coal, adding gas, and lagging behind on renewables, which they say drives up costs, harms health, and heightens climate risks.
Jenn DeRose, Missouri Beyond Coal Campaign organizing strategist for the Sierra Club, said the grades show utilities are moving backward.
"We need more renewable energy," DeRose contended. "We need more affordable renewable energy, so that customers aren't being disconnected, and customers aren't breathing toxic air. St Louis has seen many, many orange air quality days over the last couple of weeks."
Utility leaders countered that the shift cannot happen overnight, insisting reliability and affordability must be weighed alongside climate goals. The Sierra Club offers an interactive tool where Missourians can enter their ZIP code to check utility scores since 2021.
Missouri utilities said a new law, which lets them charge customers for gas plants while they’re still being built, will help fund future projects, but DeRose argued that utilities do not have to stick with business as usual and could be making very different choices.
"They can choose to make choices that benefit the public health, our future, our shared future, and the environment," DeRose asserted. "Instead, they're choosing to double down on fossil fuels."
Despite a 16% drop in emissions since 2005, Missouri still ranks fourth nationwide in coal generation.
The Missouri Public News Service originally published this story.
