ACTION ALERT: Urgent: We Need Your Help Now on CleanWater!

This week the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee is holding two hearings on Capitol Hill on the status of the Nation's waters, including wetlands, under the Clean Water Act. Legal and scientific experts, as well as states and stakeholder groups will testify. It is very likely that the Clean Water Restoration Act will be discussed during these hearings.

As you know, the Clean Water Network's priority campaign is to ensure that the broad scope of the Clean Water Act is maintained. To that end, CWN groups have been working hard to see that the Clean Water Restoration Act (HR 2421) passes Congress this session. This important legislation would settle recent debate by reaffirming the scope of the Clean Water Act as intended by Congress when it passed the Clean Water Act more than 30 years ago.

Congressman James Oberstar (MN), the Chair of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, along wi th Rep resentatives Vern Ehlers (MI) and John Dingell (MI) are lead sponsors of the Clean Water Restoration Act (HR 2421).

The full Committee hearings are scheduled for Tuesday, July 17th at 2 pm and Thursday, July 19th at 2pm in 2167 Rayburn House Office Building.

These hearings are an important part of the process of moving the Clean Water Restoration Act out of Committee and to the House Floor for a vote.
Your hard work all across the country on the Clean Water Restoration Act, HR 2421, has paid off. We now have 165 co-sponsors on Capitol Hill. Your collective efforts have been a cornerstone of the Clean Water Network's 2007 advocacy campaign to promote the bill.

We are grateful for everything you have done. However, now that hearings are scheduled it is more important than ever for you to turn the decibel level up several notches!

Opponents of the Clean Water Restoration Act have been incredibly active spreading misinformation ab out wh at HR 2421 would do. They are organizing briefings, constituent meetings, and sending scores of letters to the editor of major news outlets.

They appear to have more money than The Donald and have been able to use that to their advantage to get their message out far and wide. We need to counter their campaign with one of our own: A grassroots campaign comprised of folks from across the country who care about protecting their rivers, lakes, and wetlands.

Congress needs to hear from people like YOU, who experience up close and personal the effects of water pollution. THEY NEED TO HEAR FROM YOU NOW!

Not just once or twice, but several times. They also need to hear from your organization's members as well as partners. Everyone who cares about clean water should contact their US Representative. Folks on Capitol Hill need to get the message that it is imperative that Congress pass the Clean Water Restoration Act in the 110th Congress. Enough is enough. It is time to get serious.

To make sure Congress gets the correct clean water message here are some suggestions on how to convey your message that are not very labor intensive or costly but have a big impact nevertheless:

1. Call your Member of Congress now! If they are already a bill co-sponsor thank them. Follow-up by asking your Representative what else they can do to make the bill reality. Signing onto the bill as a co-sponsor is one level of commitment. Generating support amongst other House members by sending Dear Colleague letters is another.If your Member of Congress is not on the bill, ask them to cosponsor NOW. If you cannot speak directly with your Representative (they are extremely busy) be sure to ask to speak to the Environmental Legislative Assistant either in the district office or the DC office. If you do not have the number for your Member of Congress, call 202-224-3121 for Capitol information. You can click on www.thomas.gov and then enter the bill number (HR 2421) to check the current list of co-sponsors. You can also click on www.mygovernmentguide.com to look up the name of your Representative's environmental legislative assistant.

2. Set up a Meeting! In-district meetings with your Representative or members of her or his staff are terrific ways to deliver the message. These are difficult to arrange, but if successful can result in huge dividends. The network has a plethora of fact sheets and information on our website. If you need more information, a sample fact sheet on the bill, or other materials, you can go to: http://www.cleanwaternetwork.org//issues/scope/getengaged/DisplayContent.cfm?ContentID=51 9& ContentTypeID=4PageFormat=DisplayContent

You can either set up a meeting for yourself, other members of your group, or for a coalition of groups working together on clean water. The best way to set up a meeting quickly is to call the district office. If you do not already have a contact there, ask for the scheduler. Simply explain that you are requesting a meeting and why. Some offices require meeting requests to be in writing. If so, we have included a sample letter at the end of this alert that you can use to email or fax a written request.
It is often very important to follow up in a day or two to get an answer to your meeting request. It is also helpful in meetings such as this to have state and local information available to let your congressperson know how this affects their district directly.

3. Send a letter to Capitol Hill. A letter signed by your executive director of chairman of the board directed to your member of Congress is also a great w ay to convey your message. Another route is to get a number of organizations in your region or state to sign on to one letter to promote the bill. A sample letter follows at the end of this alert that you can tailor to meet your needs.

4. Letters to the Editor: Send letters to the editor of local news outlets. A copy of a recent LTE template can be found by clicking on the following link: http://www.2theadvocate.com/opinion/8218167.html Be sure to tailor the letter with local and state specific information.

5. Meet with the editorial boards of local and statewide media outlets.

6. Mobilize your own membership and network. Sending out action alerts to your members and associated groups is a great way to activate people. Encourage your members to get involved. Annual meetings, workshops, board meetings and the like are all good face-to-face opportunities to generate ac tion. Other possibilities include posting bulletins on your website to give folks up to date information on developments.

SAMPLE WRITTEN REQUEST FOR A MEETING

July 15, 2007

The Honorable [INSERT REPRESENTATIVE'S NAME HERE]
U.S. House of Representatives
Washington, DC20515

VIA FACSIMILE [INSERT FAX NUMBER FOR LOCAL OFFICE HERE - MEMBERS' WEBSITES CAN BE ACCESSED VIA http://www.house.gov/house/MemberWWW.shtml

Dear Representative [INSERT REPRESENTATIVE'S NAME HERE]:

I am writing to request a meeting with you when you are in the district office.

I will be representing the [GROUP NAME] and would like to speak with you about the Clean Water Restoration Act (HR 2421). [GROUP NAME] is seeking your support of this very important legislation to reaffirm the scope of the Clean Water Act as Congress intended when it passed this popular, bi-partisan legislation more than 30 years ago.

I look forward to meeting with you. Please a sk you r scheduler to contact me at [insert your
e-mail address & phone number] to set up the appointment or if you have any questions.

Thank you,

[Sign name here & location]

LETTER Template to Members of Congress asking for support on the Clean Water Restoration Act:

July____, 2007

The Honorable Representative _______________
U.S. House of Represeantatives
Washington, DC 20515


Dear Representative ____________:

On behalf of the [name of your group here], an organization committed to ensuring that our waterways provide clean drinking water and are safe for swimming, fishing and boating, we urge you to sign up to be co-sponsor of the Clean Water Restoration Act of 2007 (HR 2421). This legislation is needed to protect the nation's waters from pollution and was introduced in the US House by Representatives James Oberstar, John Dingell, and Vernon Ehlers. Currently there are 165 co-sponsors in the House.

The b ill wo uld reaffirm the historical jurisdiction of the 1972 Clean Water Act and ensure all "waters of the United States" that have been covered by federal safeguards against pollution for more than 34 years retain Clean Water Act protection. This bill does not create "new" protective authority, but simply restores the regulatory status quo. The bill is needed because decisions by the Supreme Court over the past few years (Rapanos/Carabell 2006; SWANCC 2001) and administrative actions by the Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers have muddied the waters regarding the jurisdiction of the Clean Water Act, making this bill critically important now.

Waters most at risk of losing federal protections because of these actions include small and seasonal streams and rivers, and nearby wetlands. According to the U.S. EPA, 59 percent of the nation's streams and rivers, measured in miles, fall into this category of waters. Source water protection areas containing the se sma ll or intermittent streams and rivers provide water to public drinking water supplies serving more than 110 million Americans. Wetlands also provide important functions in our watersheds, from reducing flooding to offering habitat to ducks and other wildlife.

Great strides have been made in the 34-year history of the Clean Water Act in cleaning up and restoring our nation's lakes, rivers and streams, but there is much work still to do. Today, over forty-five percent of the rivers and lakes in the United States are still too polluted to be safe for fishing, swimming, drinking water supply, wildlife habitat, and other uses. [Insert State specific information here].

The Clean Water Restoration Act will return us, in [insert STATE] and throughout the country, to the path toward further progress in cleaning up the nation's waters and making them safe and clean.

Please become a cosponsor of the Clean Water Authority Restoration Act.

Thank you for sup portin g clean water.

Sincerely yours,
Your name and organization


SAMPLE THANK YOU LETTER TO MEMBER OF CONGRESS WHO IS CO-SPONSORING CWRA

July____, 2007

The Honorable Representative _______________
U.S. House of Represeantatives
Washington, DC 20515

Dear Representative __________________:

Thank you for standing up for [State's] and the nation's waters by becoming an original co-sponsor of the Clean Water Restoration Act of 2007 (H.R. 2421). This important legislation, led by Representatives Oberstar, Ehlers, and Dingell, is needed now more than to ensure all of our nation's waters, large and small, will remain protected.

As you well know, Congress always intended that the Clean Water Act protect all of our nation's waters, from the headwater streams and wetlands where watersheds begin to the lakes, rivers and coastal waters where they end. Because of this comprehensive and scientifically based approach, the Clean Wa ter Ac t has been steadily making progress toward its central goal - to restore and maintain the chemical, physical and biological integrity of the waters of the United States.

Various industries that discharge pollution into our nation's waters are now trying to evade the Clean Water Act's longstanding restrictions on unregulated water pollution by arguing that some waters should not be subject to these limits at all. Unfortunately, recent closely-divided U.S. Supreme Court decisions and EPA's and Corps' policies now threaten to strip these long-standing federal protections from waters across the nation - including the majority of stream miles and potentially tens of millions of acres of wetlands.

The results of your efforts and those of your 164 House colleagues who are also original cosponsors of the Oberstar-Ehlers-Dingell bill will make passage of the Clean Water Restoration Act possible this Congress.

Thank you and your staff for your efforts to ensure that y our constituents and all Americans across the country have clean water.

Sincerely,

Name, organization. address

The Network will keep you updated on developments on this week's hearings and on the progress of Clean Water Restoration Act. Beginning next week be sure to check out the Network's website at www.cleanwaternetwork.org for a new section entitled "CWRA Countdown: Up to the minute news on passing the Clean Water Restoration Act." This new section will include snapshots from across the country of what YOU are doing to promote the Clean Water Restoration Act Our opening report will highlight innovative efforts underway in New Mexico by CWN members Amigos Bravos and the National Wildlife Federation. So stay tuned. Be sure to send any and all updates on your organization's activities to Natalieroy@cleanwaternetwork.org.

Thank you for all of your continued support an d effo rts on the Clean Water Restoration Act. Your support does make a difference!!

Natalie Roy
Executive Director
Clean Water Network
202-547-4208 (H208)
Natalieroy@cleanwaternetwork.org