New Bay Coalition Launches "Choose Clean Water" Campaign

Washington, DC – More than 60 organizations, representing hundreds of thousands of members and activists from the District of Columbia and the 6 states surrounding the Chesapeake Bay, launched the Choose Clean Water Campaign today to demand federal leadership to help communities clean-up and protect their local waterways.

“Clean, healthy water is vital to the health of every one of the nearly 17 million people that live in this region,” said Jan Jarrett, Executive Director of Citizens for Pennsylvania’s Future.  “For years the Clean Water Act has offered the promise of cleaning up our waters.  We need to move from promises to results for the more than 900 rivers, streams, and creeks that flow into the Chesapeake Bay.”

On May 12th President Obama issued an executive order seeking a stronger federal role in cleaning up local water with in a 64,000 square mile area that includes portions of Delaware, Pennsylvania, Virginia, New York, West Virginia, Maryland and Washington D.C.  “The President’s executive order is a unique opportunity to shape the federal role in assuring that local communities will have the legal authority and resources to clean up local streams and rivers, protect fishable and swimmable waters and ensure that all of our region’s citizens can enjoy their right to clean water,” said coalition director Hilary Harp Falk.

“By coordinating our experiences, our expertise, and our members, we will be able to speak with a clear, strong voice to make the tough choices that will give us clean water,” said Tony Caligiuri, Regional Executive Director at the National Wildlife Federation. “We want results and will expect leadership, resources, and effective implementation of programs from the officials in our federal, state and local governments.  The specific changes that need to take place to protect the waters of this region and the health of its citizens have long been identified.  This campaign will highlight where action needs to be taken, who is responsible, and will track and report on how officials are fulfilling their responsibilities to provide every citizen with clean water.”

The coalition will focus on results in three specific areas.  First, the coalition seeks to ensure that all sources of pollution to the Bay are reduced to no more than the Bay can sustain. Second, it seeks specific changes to federal transportation policy that will reduce pollution from highway runoff and encourage less consumption of land for new development.  Third, the coalition seeks strong climate change legislation to address the additional strain of global warming on our already impaired and stressed waterways. 

“We have the tools and technology.  We know that cleaning up our waterways is scientifically and technically achievable.  The question is: how can we develop the political will to make the resources available and implement the programs necessary to reach the goal of clean waters?  From this day forward we will look back and be able to say in 2009 that the commitment was made to assure that at every opportunity, our leaders choose clean water,” said Stella Koch, Conservation Associate at Audubon Naturalist Society. 

The coalition and the members of its non-profit organizations will work with both the federal government and local communities of the 53 members of Congress that represent the Chesapeake Bay watershed.  The coalition has hired full-time staff to coordinate the campaign’s activities and plans to hold an annual meeting to bring federal, state and local decision-makers together to report results of clean up and protection efforts. 

“We know what we need to do.  We need to manage the millions of tons of manure from chickens, cows, and other agricultural operations so that excess nutrients do not get into the water.  We need to reduce the emissions of nitrogen oxides from cars and power plants.  We need to upgrade sewage treatment plants.  We need to control stormwater that carries pollutants into streams and rivers to the Bay,” said Chris Miller, Executive Director of Piedmont Environmental Council.  “We have to work together to ensure that no one upstream is sending pollution downstream.”