Robert F. Kennedy Jr. writes: "Like the 104th Congress when Republicans controlled the House of Representatives, the House today is swinging a sledgehammer at a cornerstone of contemporary American democracy and undermining the most extraordinary body of environmental law in the world."
Environmental activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (photo: Santa Clara University)
An Assault on Democracy
07 July 11
ike the 104th Congress when Republicans controlled the House of Representatives, the House today is swinging a sledgehammer at a cornerstone of contemporary American democracy and undermining the most extraordinary body of environmental law in the world.
Chief among the attacks is HR 2018, known as the "Clean Water Cooperative Federalism Act of 2011." The bill, currently working its way through the House, hogties the federal government's role in administering the federal Clean Water Act and gives states a veto power over a host of critical water-quality decisions that the Clean Water Act currently authorizes the Environmental Protection Agency to make. This approach will foster a 1950s-style race-to-the-bottom as shortsighted and self-interested state politicians dismantle their clean water laws in order to recruit filthy polluters.
Corporate polluters - through massive campaign donations and relentless fear-mongering - can easily dominate the state political landscapes. Their indentured servants in Congress - many flying the Tea Party banner - are working to disrupt the existing balance between state control and federal oversight in our environmental laws by returning us to the days of limited federal supervision - a time when local government was on the side of polluters in a partnership that was stealing people's livelihoods, their recreation, their health, safety, property values and their childhoods.
The original drafters of the Clean Water Act were keenly aware of the problems inherent in leaving all responsibility to the states. Prior to 1972, that scheme had ignited rivers and firestorms and left Lake Erie declared dead. We saw the results first-hand here on the Hudson River in the 1960s - where hundreds of fishermen lost their jobs because their beloved waterways had become too polluted to allow anyone to safely eat the fish. The Clean Water Act, enacted shortly thereafter, created a beautifully simple yet powerfully effective tool to help address these problems: a federal safety net for water quality that guarantees a minimum level of protection to all Americans, no matter where you live. And for nearly 40 years this approach has been working.
Indeed, the Clean Water Act is one of our most important environmental laws, and it is a model - both in the US and abroad - for achieving a sensible balance between state officials' familiarity with local conditions and the important role the federal government plays in protecting all citizens from a race-to-the-bottom by polluters and politicians intent on short-term gain at the expense of local communities and long-term prosperity.
Having this shared authority is essential because state agencies face intense pressure to ignore the Clean Water Act in favor of the most powerful corporate interests. It is no coincidence that many of the bill's sponsors are from states where the EPA has used its authority under the Act in recent years to make sure minimum levels of protection are achieved, such as West Virginia and Florida.
Unfortunately, HR 2018 rewards states for their past failures and rolls back the clock nationally by promoting an agenda that benefits only those who seek to pollute our waterways - not the communities that depend on them.
Representative Tim Bishop of New York, to his credit, offered an amendment in committee that would have protected water bodies that serve as drinking water supplies, flooding buffers, recreation destinations and habitat for fish and game prized by anglers and hunters from these sweeping rollbacks. But sponsors of the bill would have none of it - further revealing their disinterest in the protection of the American public from the threats of water pollution.
Poll after poll shows the public's support for clean water. The American people didn't stand for these congressional attacks to our environmental laws in the mid-1990s. And we must not stand for them today.
|
THE NEW STREAMLINED RSN LOGIN PROCESS: Register once, then login and you are ready to comment. All you need is a Username and a Password of your choosing and you are free to comment whenever you like! Welcome to the Reader Supported News community. |
 20 May 2012
|
 20 May 2012
|
 22 May 2012
|
 21 May 2012
|
 21 May 2012
|
 21 May 2012
|
 21 May 2012
|
 20 May 2012
|
 20 May 2012
|
Comments
We are concerned about a recent drift towards vitriol in the RSN Reader comments section. There is a fine line between moderation and censorship. No one likes a harsh or confrontational forum atmosphere. At the same time everyone wants to be able to express themselves freely. We'll start by encouraging good judgment. If that doesn't work we'll have to ramp up the moderation.
General guidelines: Avoid personal attacks on other forum members; Avoid remarks that are ethnically derogatory; Do not advocate violence, or any illegal activity.
Remember that making the world better begins with responsible action.
- The RSN Team
I wonder, for instance, how much coal $$ are being funneled to Mr. MICA, Mr. RAHALL, Mr. SHUSTER, Mrs. CAPITO, Mr. COBLE, Mr. BARLETTA, Mr. LANDRY, Mr. DUNCAN of Tennessee, Mr. BUCSHON, Mr. CRAWFORD, Mr. GRAVES of Missouri, Mrs. SCHMIDT, and Mr. ROGERS of Kentucky), and how much oil $$ has been given to Mr. GIBBS, Mr. CRITZ, Mr. ALTMIRE, Mr. HOLDEN, Mr. HUNTER, Mr. GARY G. MILLER of California, Mr. YOUNG of Alaska.
Then I would ask what Judy Encke at EPA thinks of this bill and why it is being funded. I do hope Ms. Encke and her colleagues get a chance to testify (without interference) before this bill comes before a vote.
About seven years ago, a dear friend in Annapolis told me that her good friend, head litigator for the EPA, was pulling her hair out in frustration over not being able to enforce critical EPA rules and regs.. No huge suprise, because by then it was becoming more and more clear to me, and many others with a few brain cells working, what Bushwhacking meant - Karlrove the dumb sheeple with fully scripted, puppet whore George W. Bush, so his puppeteer villainaires could secure their fortunes rolling in and total, unethical power over all.
I, like you, Robert, have a U.S. president (Andrew Jackson) hanging in my family tree. They, and countless other people-serving, liberty and justice for all advocates must be rolling in their graves over this evil coup d'etat, and what this wannable democracy has become: the U.S. of (greed and power) A.(ddiction).
Muster up all our determination and courage, and fight like Irish and Wisconsin hell we must to UNDO THE COUP!
Consider: In Florida, once-clear stream, lake, spring, and coastal waters now frequently host harmful algal bloom eruptions--toxic outbreaks teeming with extremely dangerous bacteria. It's the state's dirty secret, dangerous to residents, vacationers--everyone.
So what does the state and House and Senate members from BOTH PARTIES do? They oppose an EPA effort to impose clean water standards here. Thus Florida has failed miserably, allowing its waters--the life source of the environment, economy, and public health here--to erupt in harmful bacteria due to fertilizer, agriculture, and waste water pollution.
The solution: Warn everyone--potential vacationers, retirees, and others considering visiting or moving to the Sunshine State. Oh, they will find sunshine, but they will also find putrid, highly dangerous neurotoxic bacteria in practically all the water bodies here. All because of humans, and because humans refuse to clean it up.
Angelfish, do not even consider calling these evil vermin wealthy; the are MECA-GREEDY REPUBLICOMMIES! ! True wealthy people have class, character, and humane compassion. Here is the motto of the republicommies; an oath they probably recite at their secret gatherings.
"Get ALL you CAN,
CAN ALL YOU GET!
SIT ON THE CAN,
AS YOU IMPOVERISH YOUR FELLOW-MAN!!"
There is NO way the present system can last. But even couple years of this trend can destroy environment forever.
Tea Party reactionary who makes me ill just listening to his right-wing extreme psycho-talk. Do I have to guess his position on this piece of degenerate legislation?
Any member of Congress who can vote for this bill without a gun to his or her head is a traitor to the health and best interests of all Americans, and a butt-stooge to the Kochs and their ilk. I'm ashamed to say my Congressman Allen West will be one of those. He's Clarence Thomas with ribbons on his chest.
Corrected.
HR2018 and 'fracking' may take away our ability to maintain clean water.
Clean water is the gold of the future. If they won't do it for the sake of their constituency, they should do it for the sake of their own pocketbooks. Already, there are parts of the world (even in this country) who are fighting over clean water.
Time to be pragmatic ..Obama approval is 45% and sinking.
YES! The key word here is Cheney! Does anyone here believe that GW was anything but a puppet to Cheney and his ilk?
Obama is clearly brilliant... but his problem is that he is not a leader. He hasn't stood up for what he "said" he believed in. "leave it to congress?" D@mn! He is the man with "the bully pulpit."
www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKuaI90djrw&NR=1
and this is happening ALL over the country - at City meetings - etc.
If the Clean Water Act is compromised it will mean that the state at the top of the Mississippi River can polute the river with impunity and cause problems for the other states down streem. The farmer in the upper state can do with impunity that which will destroy economic opportunty for the farmer in a state down river. Republicans/teas are evil. They have no regard for anyone and no intentions of supporting life.
I take small comfort in the realization that, EVENTUALLY, GOD will judge these Immoral, Unscrupulous, Amoral Basta*ds who would fund the Mega-wealthy at the expense of the workinig and unemployed poor of this Country!
There is no God, there is only us. Its up to us to get these currupt, selfish people out of office.
'DEMOCRATIC PARTY' YOUR DAD AND UNCLE WWOULD BE TERRIBLIY ASHAMED OF YOU.YOU WOULD BRING TARS TO THEIR EYES!!!!!!!!!!
WRONG! His dad would have been the first to stand up for a strong EPA that protects ALL of this countries citizens.
(I'm speculating on what your tirade actually said, the spelling, and "yelling" made is difficult to translate)
The question that no one seems able to answer is how to turn this shameful situation around so that the government (both parties) represents the hard working citizens of this country and not the greedy interests of themselves and their corporate puppet masters.
The companies involved admit that the ore body will last 15-20 years at most. They claim they will not make a mess--when every other mining venture of this sort has left a wasteland behind. And locals, including at least one newspaper, keep attacking the state for requiring an environmental impact statement which the companies have not been able to satisfy despite eight years of trying.
This is said to be some sort of conspiracy to keep jobs away from this area. Yes....15 or so years of jobs and an area polluted with heavy metals, acids, and who knows what forever. Perhaps they expect the inevitable Superfund site to be a job creator? Or perhaps they expect to make enough money to have water trucked into the heart of the land of 10,000 lakes?
Please folks, look into this--Franconia and Polymet are the companies involved. Or just try "non-ferrous mining Northern Minnesota". This has got to be stopped.
RSS feed for comments to this post.