Editor, Gazette-Journal:
The EPA has issued a notice of proposed rulemaking that would require the states to come up with plans to reduce the carbon emissions of power plants by 30 percent by 2030. This has the potential of increasing the costs of electricity to Virginia citizens. 
For a change, the EPA is not telling states how to meet the targets; it is performance-based rather than dictatorial. They are letting us choose how to comply with the rule. The EPA focuses on four “building blocks” for the best system of emissions reductions: (1) improving efficiency of coal plants; (2) switching to natural gas; (3) increasing renewables, and (4) reducing demand.  
The EPA estimates that for every $1 invested in complying with the rule, Americans will reap $7 in health benefits. 
However, it is still a regulation and a potential expansion of government bureaucracy. 
So, what is the alternative? How can we reduce emissions without inflicting pain on households...