New emails obtained under a Freedom of Information Act request from the Energy and Environment Legal Institute show the astonishing degree of collusion between the Environmental Protection Agency and environmental activist groups.

In some cases, the EPA asked environmental groups such as the Sierra Club for their talking points and agenda items so that the agency could incorporate activist viewpoints into official government messaging.

When developing the agency’s emissions regulations affecting new coal-fired power plants, the EPA chose to hold hearings on the proposed regulations in cities and states that receive little of their energy from coal. These newly-uncovered emails confirm why the agency avoided the major coal-producing states: environmental activists suggested areas that would be “friendlier forums” for discussing the EPA’s move to essentially ban new coal plants.

Examples of the EPA’s cozy relationship with activists are plentiful–the agency even helped activists collect signatures for petitions on EPA rulemakings, using official government events to aid activists. Emails also show that activist groups were sent advanced copies of EPA releases and the EPA incorporated activist group messaging into the agency’s briefing documents for Congress.

These new revelations only confirm that Big Green Radicals have a powerful impact on federal environmental regulations.