Nearly a decade ago, Waterkeeper Alliance and our partners won an important legal victory that helps keep pesticides from poisoning our waterways. This ruling meant that Clean Water Act permits are legally required before pesticides are sprayed over and into waterways. Pesticides are poisons designed to kill living organisms, and many pose serious health risks, often impacting children more severely.
It makes sense that chemicals designed to kill should be treated as pollutants that need to be regulated under the Clean Water Act. Right now, anyone who sprays pesticides into waterways is required to track and report what they are doing. This keeps companies and others who use pesticides accountable, and helps communities stay informed of the poisons being released in their waterways and communities. Ever since our legal victory, the chemical industry has been heavily lobbying Congress to create a legislative exemption allowing unimpeded and unpermitted releases of pesticides into waterways.
A new version of this exemption was snuck in as a rider to the version of 2018 Farm Bill that passed the House of Representatives, but is currently not in the Senate bill. Starting on Wednesday, September 5, conferees from the House and Senate will be meeting to reconcile the differences between the two bills.
Congress needs to hear that the public is opposed to anti-environmental riders in the final 2018 Farm Bill. Please call your members of Congress and let them know that you do not want the pesticides industry to poison our waterways. Here are some talking points you can use:
- My name is [YOUR NAME] and I am a resident of ZIP code [ZIP CODE].
- I am calling to express my concerns about anti-environmental riders in the House version of the 2018 Farm Bill.
- Section 9118 of the bill, titled “Discharges of Pesticides,” would amend the Clean Water Act to allow unregulated discharges of pesticides into our nation’s waterways.
- This rider would also prevent states from making their own rules to protect waterways from pesticides.
- Requiring Clean Water Act permitting for pesticides being released into waterways is important because it protects our waterways from unnecessary chemical pollution and keeps the public informed.
- I am asking you to stand up for public health, our rivers, and the environment and oppose this and other anti-environmental riders in the Farm Bill.
Calls are especially needed to Senators and Representatives that are members of the conference committee.
[CongressLookup]