Toxins in Chicago's water? Tell the EPA 'NO'

On 9/9/2010 10:53 AM, Marcia Lesky, Defenders of Wildlife wrote:

 

		Tell the EPA to Regulate Polluters in Illinois! Coal ash can harm fish and other wildlife that feeds on them such as bald eagles. Thursday in Chicago: Tell the EPA to hold polluters responsible for toxic coal ash. Forward this to friends and neighbors in Illinois! Dear Daniel, Toxins in our water are killing largemouth bass, channel catfish and sunfish. Sludge from coal-fired power plants is seeping into America’s streams, rivers, and lakes daily, threatening fish and fish-eating wildlife like bald eagles. Tell the Environmental Protection Agency to safeguard our wildlife and environment next Thursday in Chicago. EPA is holding public hearings across the country to hear from you on harmful coal ash, a hazardous by-product of coal-fired power plants. Currently there is little regulation on toxic coal ash, so please tell the EPA to stand up to polluters and help save wildlife What: EPA Public Hearing on Toxic Coal Ash When: Thursday, September 16th 10:00 am - 12:00 pm, 1:00 pm - 5:00 pm, 6:30 pm - 9:00pm Where: Hilton Chicago 720 South Michigan Avenue Chicago, IL 60605 See it on a map Coal-burning plants across the country generate coal ash that escapes into the environment daily. Coal ash toxins—such as arsenic, cadmium, and selenium—are polluting our waters, impacting a variety of species of bass, catfish and sunfish, as well as the people and wildlife that eat them. Your drinking water could be next. Join Defenders at the EPA hearing in Chicago next Thursday and tell them to regulate harmful coal ash now! EPA is looking at several types of regulations, some much weaker than others. In order to protect largemouth bass and bald eagles, EPA must regulate coal ash as a “special waste” under Subtitle C of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA). Subtitle C of RCRA would force the safe handling and monitoring of toxic coal ash and the development of state and local hazardous waste management programs, so that coal ash would have a much smaller impact on wildlife and the environment.  Notably, regulating coal ash under Subtitle C would get rid of dangerous waste ponds that often lead to coal ash escaping into neighboring rivers, streams and lakes, and have sometimes resulted in disastrous spills. Tell the EPA to regulate coal ash as strongly as possible under Subtitle C of RCRA. Polluters are hoping for a much weaker regulation that would regulate coal ash as a non-hazardous waste, such as metal scrap, milk containers or coffee grounds. But dead fish and birds do not lie. Coal ash is hazardous and must be strongly regulated. Corporate interests are fighting hard to protect their polluting ways. If we don’t speak out now, the polluters will win and wildlife and – our communities – will lose. RSVP now and speak up next Thursday in Chicago and tell the EPA that coal ash needs to be regulated as the hazardous waste that it is. In order to save bald eagles, largemouth bass, catfish and sunfish, we need you to speak out in Chicago. Will you join wildlife supporters in Chicago next Thursday? For the wild ones, Marcia Lesky National Outreach Director Defenders of Wildlife
		© Copyright 2010 Defenders of Wildlife. Defenders of Wildlife is a national, nonprofit membership organization dedicated to the protection of all native wild animals and plants in their natural communities. Defenders of Wildlife can be contacted at: 1130 17th Street, NW Washington, DC 20036