Good Morning. I received this info from our friend Albert Slap, Esquire, yesterday, and thought you’d like to know what I learned… if you don’t know who your representative is, this website is a good place to start.
The Federal Clean Water Act was passed almost 40-years ago and stands as one of the greatest legislative success stories in American history. Before its passage, states competed against each other to have the most lax water pollution laws, in a misguided attempt to attract industry (and jobs). This perverse competition was called the "race to the bottom". Things got so bad that, in 1969, the Cuyahoga River in Ohio caught fire, spurring an avalanche of water pollution control activities, including the creation of the US Environmental Protection Agency and passage of the Federal Clean Water Act. The Clean Water Act’s main success was stopping the States’ "race to the bottom" by creating a national water pollution "floor", which States could
not allow the quality of their rivers and streams to fall below. Also, the federal EPA set national pollution control standards for most industries; States could regulate their industries more strictly, but not less so. This
created a fair and level playing field for all corporations doing business in America.
In the next few days, the full House of Representatives is set to vote on H.R. 2018, the Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act of 2011. The title of this proposed legislation is highly misleading. This law, if passed, would actually reverse 40-years of cooperative federalism and will, once again,
trigger a new "race to the bottom" by the states. This destructive legislation would strip EPA of its essential ability to step in when a state has failed to ensure that America’s waters are free from harmful pollution.
This legislation will kill off thousands of jobs that depend on adequate supplies of clean water and will directly threaten America’s drinking water supplies.
Please send this email to your Representative, today… Or, of course, write your own letter or phone your rep asap!
Subject: Oppose H.R. 2018
Dear Member of Congress:
I am writing to urge you to oppose H.R. 2018, introduced by Representatives
Nick Rahall and John Mica.
Opposing this legislation is essential to protecting the quality of
America’s waters. H.R. 2018 effectively undermines the Clean Water Act,
eliminating the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)’s most important
oversight authorities that are necessary to hold states accountable for
following through with water quality programs and to ensure that water is
clean for our environment, families and our economy. Rather than encourage
cooperative efforts between the state and federal governments, H.R. 2018
would undercut the Clean Water Act’s checks and balances that have been in
place for 40 years, putting communities and public health at risk.
Please oppose this attack on the Clean Water Act.
Your friend in Woody Creek,
Anita Thompson
All comments are subject to review before being published.
