Letter to Reps Arnold and Braun; don’t remove Solid Waste Management Districts
Dear Rep. Arnold (H74) and Rep. Braun (H63),
Considering that Indiana is already at or near rock-bottom in air and water quality, public health, infant mortality rates, birth defect rates, etc., please oppose HB 1082. We understand that this bill passed out of the House Environmental Affairs Committee (by a 7 to 6 vote) this past Wednesday, despite compelling testimony from public health, environmental, consumer, and faith-based organizations.
We do not understand how Indiana’s leaders can consider this bill in light of our recent 50th ranking in air pollution by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. http://www.aol.com/article/2016/01/04/the-most-polluted-states-in-america/21291480/ We can’t make sense of our governing body considering this bill in light of the Ohio River’s “most polluted body of water in the US” ranking for the past seven years. http://www.wlwt.com/news/report-ohio-river-most-polluted-body-of-water-in-us-for-7th-year-in-row/31456864
We understand that HB 1082 will be voted on by the Indiana House as soon as this Tuesday, February 2. Please vote no. If HB 1082 passes, this legislation would make it highly unlikely that Indiana will be able to act proactively to prevent health and environmental catastrophes like the lead-contaminated drinking water crisis in Flint, Michigan, or the major contamination tragedies that occurred within the past two years in West Virginia and North Carolina.
One quart of motor oil can contaminate up to 250,000 gallons of drinking water. Household hazardous waste–like used motor oil–is, fortunately, the type of product that Indiana’s county-level Solid Waste Management Districts (SWMDs) are on the front lines of collecting and safely disposing. Unfortunately, SB 366 would threaten the long-term future of SWMDs.
SB 366 would reverse Indiana’s 25-year-old law that makes SWMDs a requirement for every community. When Indiana faces severe environmental challenges, it is unwise to enable the dismantling of a local government agency that provides services that help keep local community’s air, soil, and water free from toxic pollution, demolition and construction waste, and stormwater. Instead of enabling the dismantling of SWMDs, now more than ever, we need to be improving the quality and quantity of SWMDs’ services.
Medically speaking, the growing body of peer-reviewed studies and reports promoting proactive government intervention to safeguard public health is irrefutable. Here are a few from hundreds. Please take time to review these. In Indiana, our air quality and our high atrazine use are prime examples of the need for greater government protective services, not a free pass to polluters.
http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/305638.php
Dr. Paul Winchester, St. Francis Hospital, Indianapolis
http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/ehs/news/2013/atrazine-health
For our children’s sake, we must error on the side of “the precautionary principle” and ensure a healthier environment going forward. This bill is unconscionable given what we know. Our elected officials’ primary interest should be to protect the public, especially our children’s health and environment.
Please let us know your stance. Thank you.
Sincerely,
Rock Emmert
teacher, Forest Park Jr.-Sr. High School, Ferdinand
Norma Kreilein, MD FAAP
pediatrician, Washington and Jasper
Kris Lasher
domestic violence victim advocate, Jasper and region
