Stop the assault on clean air, water

Illinoisans voted for many things in November, but they certainly did not vote for more asthma attacks, more contaminated drinking water and more threats to our open spaces. Unfortunately, that is exactly what U.S. Reps. Biggert, Dold, Hultgren, Roskam and Walsh helped bring upon Illinois by voting for the outrageously anti-environmental House leadership’s funding bill (HR 1).

Passed under cover of night, this bill endangers the health of children, elderly citizens and other vulnerable populations by blocking the Environmental Protection Agency from doing its job and cleaning up coal-fired power plants and other large sources of dangerous carbon dioxide pollution. It also puts Lake Michigan and the drinking water supplies at risk by blocking Clean Water Act protections. For Illinois, this means a funding cut of $225 million which would not only harm our health and environment but is estimated to cost our state 7,400 jobs.

I am dismayed that so many Chicago-area representatives voted to abandon our core environmental and public health programs. It is now up to Sen. Dick Durbin, Sen. Mark Kirk, and President Obama to help defeat the biggest assault on our air and water in recent history.

Miranda Carter

Field Organizer

Environment Illinois