Clean water is essential to all living things, and we rely on our waterways for drinking, swimming and playing. That's why we were thrilled when the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers finalized the Clean Water Rule to protect public health and safeguard our water from pollution. Now we're telling Congress they need to stand up to the polluters and support these important protections with a new national TV ad:
We know that polluters and their allies in Congress are coming out swinging against these vital clean water safeguards. But with overwhelming public support for the Clean Water Rule, this ad campaign is a message to Congress that their priority needs to be restoring safeguards for the drinking water of 117 million Americans.
For more than 40 years, the Clean Water Act has protected our nation's waterways. However, two Supreme Court decisions in 2001 and 2006 created confusion about which waterways should be protected, leaving more than half of our nation's streams and 20 million acres of wetlands vulnerable to pollution. These small streams and wetlands feed the Puget Sound, the Mississippi River and the Chesapeake Bay, as well as hundreds of other iconic bodies of water.
The EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' Clean Water Rule will finally restore pollution safeguards for small streams and wetlands that contribute to the drinking water of one in three Americans. It will protect our waterways for generations, ensuring that our children and grandchildren have clean water to drink, swim, and play in.
Over 800,000 Americans submitted comments in support of the rule, and according to a recent LCV poll, 80 percent of the public support the Clean Water Rule and the protections it will provide. In fact, 78 percent of voters trust the EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to protect small streams and wetlands while just seven percent trust Congress to make the best decisions to safeguard our waterways. In addition, the poll found that 69 percent of voters would view their Senator less favorably if they voted to block these critical protections.
Yet, even with this immense public support, the Clean Water Rule is facing attacks from polluters, including Big Oil and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. They are galvanizing their allies in Congress to block, undermine and dismantle the EPA and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers' efforts to protect our drinking water.
By restoring protections for small streams and wetlands, we can preserve the water our children and grandchildren drink, swim, and play in for generations to come. The EPA made the right decision, and now Congress needs to support the Clean Water Rule