Lead in Your Drinking Water

What would you do if your state's environmental agency told you your drinking water was contaminated? What if no other source is provided?

This is the question two families in Oakwood, Illinois faced when boron, lead, iron and manganese from a nearby coal ash site polluted their wells.

Don't let another family face this choice--send a message supporting coal ash standards today.

Click here.

There are over 500 coal ash sites across the country like the one in Oakwood, putting communities at risk from dangerous toxins that can seep into water sources and pollute the air. In fact, residents living near these sites face a heightened, 1 in 50 risk of cancer.[1] We need strong, federal regulations to enforce necessary safeguards.

When the Illinois EPA sent a notice in 2001 informing the owners and operators that the Oakwood site was an illegal dump, they responded by claiming that the site was not a landfill, but a beneficial use site and that a building would be constructed on top. We're still waiting for that building.

It's time to protect communities near these sites with federal regulations governing coal ash disposal.

Click here.

In response to the 2008 coal ash disaster in Tennessee, the EPA moved quickly to submit draft regulations to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review, but now the coal industry is putting intense pressure on the White House to stop or weaken the rule.

We cannot afford further delay--send a message to the White House and help us give the Obama Administration the public support it needs to protect hundreds of communities across the country from the hazards of toxic coal ash!

Click here.

Thanks for all you do to protect the environment.

[1] "Holding EPA and coal plants accountable for pollution," The
Hill,September 15, 2009. Link.

Move Your Money

Watch this advert about moving your money out of the big banks and into the smaller institutions where they are not liable to rip you off.

While I support not keeping a dime in places such as Bank of America or Citibank, an alternate idea is what I do. I keep $25 in one of the big banks--that will remain nameless--just as a base and because I can easily deposit money into any of the thousands of their ATM locations, I use it just for the deposit and then immediately transfer funds to my other bank where I get decent interest. I think that if all of their customers took the time to do this and only consistently kept $25 in their accounts, those big banks would be destroyed. Thank about it.

Will Canada Stop Trade in Polar Bear Parts?

In some countries, collectors can still buy polar bear skin rugs, claws, skulls and other parts of these beloved bears--even as they struggle for survival in a warming world.

The Canadian government can strengthen protections for polar bears under international law by supporting a proposal to halt international trade in polar bear products--a move that could save the lives of hundreds of polar bears each year. But Canadian officials need to hear from us to understand just how many people care about these struggling bears.

Take action now--urge Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and conservation officials to support an international ban on the trade of polar bear products.

American Character Along Highway 50

Earth Hour 2010

Who Controls Your Clicks?

This year will be a defining year for the Internet. Will control remain in the hands of its millions of users? Or will a few phone and cable companies decide which Web sites we can and cannot see?

The Federal Communications Commission must hear from us in the next few days before it creates a final rule that, if done right, will protect Net Neutrality--the Internet's First Amendment--once and for all.

But they're facing intense pressure from giant telecomm companies that want to strip away our right to an open Internet.

Tell the FCC: Don’t Cave to Comcast and AT&T

The FCC needs our feedback by Thursday. The window for commenting is closing fast. We must act now to stop these companies in their tracks.

The phone and cable companies and their phony front groups have already flooded the FCC with comments calling for an end to Net Neutrality. It's time that the FCC heard the voices of people like us who rely on the free and open Internet every day. Just click on the link below:

Demand Net Neutrality Before It’s Too Late

The phone and cable companies are trying to stuff the FCC docket with lies and misleading statements. That’s why we need you to tell the FCC that you care about Net Neutrality and the open Internet.

By filing comments today, you can make sure that no FCC commissioner can in good conscience side with the phone and cable cartel against an open Internet.

Tell the FCC to protect Net Neutrality.

Fight Attacks on Global Warming Progress

Just last month, President Obama's EPA declared that global-warming pollution endangers human health and welfare and announced plans to limit emissions from big polluters. Now this plan is under attack in Congress by Senator Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and other friends of Big Coal and Oil.

Tell your senators to oppose an amendment from Senator Murkowski to stop President Obama from enforcing limits on global-warming pollution. Click here.