This piece was cross-posted at Natural Papa.
Each year, over 78,000 pounds of mercury are released from coal fired power plants, right into the air that we all breathe, which then finds its way into our water and soil as well.
That’s a whole lotta poison, considering that it only takes a small amount (a teaspoon) to contaminate an entire lake. And there’s no debate on the toxicity of mercury – we already know it’s a heinous chemical that should stay far away from humans.
So when do we say “Enough is enough!” about toxic mercury emissions?
Right freakin’ now. There are no good excuses for why you didn’t act, and no good excuses for procrastination because “Somebody else will do it.”
I’m challenging you to educate yourself, and then to take action and hold your representatives, your local power plant, and the EPA accountable for the toxic chemicals released into our shared atmosphere by coal-burning power plants. According to the Sierra Club, coal plants are one of the largest sources of man-made mercury pollution in the U.S., and:
“Almost 2/3 of coal-fired plants lack the needed modern pollution controls to keep toxic air pollution, like mercury, acid gases and arsenic, out of our air and water.”
You can find out which power plants near you are the worst offenders with this coal map from the Sierra Club, and get the names and addresses of the owners of the worst polluting coal plants from the Moms Clean Air Force, so you can write to these poisoners of our air and water and demand that they clean up their act. Then you need to take a stand and lend your voice to the campaign to support strong clean air standards:Take Action: Support Tough New Mercury and Air Toxics Standards
So, do you care enough about the health of your children and your friends and family to spend half an hour taking action? I sure as hell hope so, because if we don’t, the big utility companies will whine and complain about the new standards until they are taken off the table, and big business will continue to set the agenda for our health and environment. And because they don’t have our best interests at heart, and they don’t give a fig about our children’s health, we will continue to be the lab rats for them.
The hell with that. Please stand with me for strong clean air standards. It’s already getting late, and we’ve got no time to lose.