A new report finds that racial discrimination within USDA programs is responsible for this decline.
Friday, April 12, 2019
Sunday, April 7, 2019
Saturday, April 6, 2019
Update: Mapping of the Expanding PFAS Crisis
Known Contamination from Toxic Fluorinated Chemicals Keeps Spreading, With No End in Sight
Last fall, Sandy Wynn-Stelt of Plainfield Township, Mich., learned that her well is contaminated with fluorinated industrial chemicals at more than 500 times the Environmental Protection Agency’s “safe” level for drinking water. In January, test results showed she had 750 times the amount of one of those chemicals in her blood as the average American.
Thursday, March 28, 2019
BREAKING: Line 5 Tunnel Law Unconstitutional - Now Shut Down Line 5!
 Leaders of the Oil & Water Don't Mix campaign to protect the Great Lakes from oil pipelines praised actions by Gov. Whitmer today on Line 5 in response to an attorney general’s opinion and urged her to move quickly in decommissioning Enbridge’s troubled Line 5. Attorney General Dana Nessel’s comprehensive, detailed legal analysis requested by Gov. Whitmer concluded that in the lame-duck legislature’s haste to enact Public Act 359 during the closing days of the 2018 session it committed many fatal flaws when drafting the legislation. Attorney General Nessel also concluded related agreements for a Line 5 oil tunnel should be voided along with Public Act 359. In response, Gov. Whitmer issued an executive directive halting state agencies from moving forward on a proposed Enbridge Line 5 oil tunnel.  “The backroom deals creating Enbridge’s proposed oil tunnel couldn’t survive public scrutiny and now we know they can’t survive the rule of law,” said Liz Kirkwood, Executive Director of FLOW (For Love of Water). “It’s time to focus on Michigan’s true energy future and protect Michigan’s Great Lakes and our economy from a Line 5 pipeline rupture. The path forward for Michigan is for Gov. Whitmer to immediately begin the process of decommissioning Line 5 in the Straits of Mackinac.” “By upending the Enbridge sweetheart deals struck by former Gov. Snyder, Attorney General Nessel is protecting Michigan from horrible agreements that only benefit Enbridge,” said Sean McBrearty, campaign coordinator for Oil & Water Don’t Mix. “The attorney general is rightfully wiping the legal slate clean and now Gov. Whitmer has the opportunity to put Michigan on a path that doesn’t lead to a disastrous outcome for the Great Lakes and Michigan. Her decision to halt all Line 5 activity is a significant and appropriate step forward and has our full support.”
Help OWDM counter the media blitz that is sure to come from Enbridge
Fund our new social media campaign to spread the truth about Line 5 Previously Gov. Whitmer asked the Michigan Public Service Commission to focus on Michigan’s energy infrastructure and issue an initial report by July. As part of a plan to decommission Line 5, Gov. Whitmer should make sure that the public service commission includes a focus on the energy needs of Upper Peninsula residents. “Studies have shown that Line 5 is not critical energy infrastructure for Michigan, including the UP,” said Anne Woiwode, Chair of Sierra Club in Michigan. “The public service commission report can be an important tool to point the way to both short and longer term energy solutions for the UP, including alternatives to using Line 5 to transport natural gas liquids used to produce propane.” The Straits of Mackinac Alliance, a group challenging the state permits that allow Enbridge to add 200 anchor supports to buy more time for the 66-year-old Line 5 pipeline, which is well past its expected lifespan, said it is past time to pull the plug on Enbridge’s ticking time bomb. “The time for action by the governor is now,” said Leonard Page, vice chair of the alliance. “Initiating the legal process for decommissioning Line 5 must start immediately so we can finally eliminate this serious risk of an oil spill in the Great Lakes.” “The idea of building new fossil fuel infrastructure with a 99-year lease is nonsensical given the latest science bulletin about climate change,” saidBill Latka of TC350. “The IPCC, an international body of climate scientists, says that we have 11 years to reduce our fossil fuel use by 50 percent. Building a tunnel may not even be started in 11 years. It makes no sense.” Oil & Water Don't Mix looks forward to working with and encouraging Gov. Whitmer and her administration to take the swift action necessary to eliminate this threat to our Great Lakes and curtail Michigan's role as a conduit for climate-warming fossil fuels. David Holtz Oil & Water Don't Mix http://www.oilandwaterdontmix.org/ Learn more about the Movement. Visit: www.oilandwaterdontmix.org Follow on Twitter and Facebook. Oil & Water Don't Mix 602 W Ionia St, Lansing, MI 48933, United States cleanwater@oilandwaterdontmix.org |
Gov. Whitmer Signs Executive Directive Ordering State Departments and Agencies to Halt Action on PA 359
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEMarch 28, 2019Gov. Whitmer Signs Executive Directive Ordering State Departments and Agencies to Halt Action on PA 359Attorney General Nessel declares Mackinac Straits Corridor Authority law unconstitutionalLANSING, Mich. -- Today after reviewing the opinion issued by Attorney General Nessel, Governor Whitmer signed an executive directive instructing state departments and agencies to halt any actions in furtherance of the Mackinac Straits Corridor Authority law, Public Act 359 of 2018.“I agree with the conclusion reached by Attorney General Nessel,” Whitmer said. “The Great Lakes are our most precious resource in Michigan, and because of their significance, I’ve instructed state departments and agencies to halt any actions in furtherance of this law.”Executive Directive 2019-13 directs state departments and autonomous agencies not to take any further action regarding Act 359 and to report to the governor’s legal counsel regarding actions taken since the bill was passed.This Executive Directive will be effective immediately upon filling.To view the full executive directive and Attorney General opinion, click the links below:
Friday, March 22, 2019
PFAS affecting dairy in Maine and New Mexico
- The curious case of tainted milk from a Maine dairy farm
- State Urged To Prevent Exposure To Harmful Chemicals Found In Sewage Sludge
- Public health experts aim to stop spreading of sludge
- Groundwater contamination devastates New Mexico dairy — and threatens public health
- Clovis dairy’s well contamination has farmers across the Ogallala concerned
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