STOP MOUNTAINTOP REMOVAL

Last week Ken Salazar, Secretary of the Department of the
Interior, appeared before the press to make a "Big
Announcement."  

Sadly, his "big announcement" was merely a statement of intent to return to the George W. Bush era of refusing to protect streams and rivers from the destructive practice of mountaintop removal coal mining.
Tell him to take a strong stand and enforce the Stream Buffer Zone rule and Stop Mountaintop Removal Mining!  

Secretary Salazar announced that Interior is moving to vacate a midnight rulemaking by the outgoing Bush administration that stripped stream protections from the Reagan-era Stream Buffer Zone rule. Sounds good so far, right? But then he made an about-face by revealing that Interior would continue to implement the restored rule as it had in the past: that even though the Stream Buffer Zone rule is back on the books, Interior won't even enforce it to stop stream destruction! In fact, Salazar fervently promised that current coal mining practices would not be affected, and it's going to be business as usual for coal companies who carry out destructive mountaintop removal mining.  

Secretary Salazar's announcement is meaningless without a
commitment to enforce the law. Returning to the status quo will continue to allow destructive mountaintop removal coal mining practices to dump waste within 100 feet of perennial and seasonal streams. When Secretary Salazar campaigned to serve as a Colorado Senator, he said that some of his proudest accomplishments in public life came from bringing varied interests together to protect and preserve land and water.

Tell him to take a strong stand and enforce the Stream Buffer Zone rule and Stop Mountaintop Removal Mining!
TAKE ACTION NOW:
http://action.earthjustice.org/ct/d1A9ZlY11Tsg/  

From: "Stop Mountaintop Removal" info@stopmountaintopremoval.org
Date: 5 мая 2009 г. 11:30  

EDITABLE PETITION:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ SUBJECT: Protect Appalachian Streams and Headwaters 

I am concerned about your recent announcement to restore the stream buffer zone rule without a commitment to enforce the law and prevent mountaintop removal mining coal companies from dumping their waste into Appalachian streams and headwaters.  

When you campaigned to serve as a Colorado Senator, you said that some of your proudest accomplishments in public life have been those times when you brought varied interests together to protect and preserve land and water.  From a man who grew up in the shadow of the majestic Mt. Blanca, and on the banks of the crystal clear Conejos River, I would expect nothing less.  Don't the mountains and streams of Appalachia deserve the same protections?  

Before the attempt by the Bush administration to effectively repeal the stream buffer zone rule, mountaintop removal mining ran roughshod across Appalachia. According to the EPA's own figures, more than 2,000 miles of streams have been buried and more than 500,000 acres have been flattened. If this is left unchecked, America's landscapes and vital sources of drinking water will be devastated.  

Repealing the Bush rollbacks on the stream buffer zone rule will be a meaningless gesture if you do not plan to enforce that law and prohibit companies from placing waste within 100 feet of a stream. Please put the Buffer back in the Stream Buffer Zone Rule! Communities in Appalachia and some of the world's oldest mountains are at risk of being destroyed forever.  

Please don't look the other way while coal companies destroy Appalachia and ignore the stream buffer zone rule. Protect our vital streams and drinking water and enforce the law.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
TAKE ACTION NOW:
http://action.earthjustice.org/ct/d1A9ZlY11Tsg/