Press Release

 

August 3, 2006                                                          Contact:  Paul Donahue :  psdonahue@bellsouth.net

For Immediate Release                                                

 

 

WNC Democrats support the environment with new sign campaign

 

Democrats have another message for their Western North Carolina neighbors and this time it’s green.   In view of record temperatures and polluted air, it seems very appropriate that our new message focuses on the environment.  The following  “burma shave” style message will be placed in communities across Western North Carolina Friday,  August 4, 2006:

 

God granted humans

Stewardship of creation

Clean air, land, and water

Our divine obligation

WNC Democrats

Revere God’s garden

 

The signs are part of a public information campaign created by a special task force chaired by Paul Donahue of Henderson County.   Eva Ritchey, Chair of the Henderson County Democratic Party thinks the campaign will help inform the public about the values that the Democratic Party supports.   “I think it is very important that citizens know the important issues  that the Democratic Party has supported.  The Democratic Party always has been and will continue to be in the forefront of environmental stewardship and energy independence. Environmental stewardship certainly is an important issue in Western North Carolina when you consider that smog levels here rival those of Los Angeles.  Worse yet, the Great Smoky Mountains are now the #1 most polluted national park in the entire country.   Our air has never been so dangerous and here in Henderson County asthma rates among children has skyrocketed.  How can we tell the next generation that this was the best we could do? ”

Democrats hold the same strong vision of America as our forefathers—a vision for keeping America strong and secure, creating good jobs for all Americans, and holding community values that protect our children’s health. A neighbor has no right pumping sulfur dioxide into your home, and neither does the government.

While the Democratic Party has traditionally played a supportive and central role in environmental protection, the Republican Party has failed over and over again to protect our vital natural resources as the following information shows:

1.) Henderson County Republican Commissioners allowed an asphalt plant to be built on the banks of a major tributary, Mud Creek, within walking distance of a school and residences.  Republican Commissioners have failed to enact a sedimentation and erosion control ordinance as well as a ridgetop ordinance to protect our fragile mountain landscape. 
2.)  Under the Bush Republicans, Great Smoky Mountains National Park has been declared the single most polluted park in America, with ozone quality rivaling that of Los Angeles. The EPA warns tourists the park has “levels of ozone pollution that threaten human health.”  [National Park Service, Accessed 07/24/06]; [National Parks and Conservation Association, Accessed 07/21/06]
3.) In the American Lung Association’s “State of the Air 2006,” North Carolina had more counties receiving “F’s” for air quality than any other southern state.  This seriously jeopardizes the health thousands of North Carolina children, many living near coal-plants in the western North Carolina.  [ALA, Accessed 07/21/06]
4.) The Bush administration’s rollback of mercury emissions trading-standards allowed North Carolina to become one of the “ten most mercury polluted states in America”- endangering our $2.3 billon fishing industry. Fish consumption is the primary source of mercury exposure in the United States. [Raleigh News & Observer, 03/20/06]
5.)  The Bush administration no longer bills polluters for environmental clean-up; they bill taxpayers and working families.  North Carolina is home to several “Superfund Sites”—areas deemed to be the most toxic and heavily polluted in the country. Until now, polluting industries have been required to contribute to a trust-fund, with the money going towards cleaning-up of unidentified pollution created by such industries. Every president since Ronald Reagan has supported these “polluter pays” laws, except George W. Bush. The Bush administration has not only chosen not to renew the “polluter pays” laws, they have cut the money spent on clean-up by 50%, and ordered the rest come from taxpayers.[Sierra Club Votes, Accessed 07/22/06]
6.)  The worst environmental voting records in all of congress belong to North Carolina Republicans. Although Reps Coble, Myrick, and Taylor all earned scores of 6% from the League of Conservation voters, Rep. Robin Hayes dropped below the entire congress with an environmental voting scorecard of 0%. Contributing to Hayes’ rating was his aggressive push against raising fuel economy standards, and a vote approving the sale of public recreation and fishing areas to private mining companies.[League of Conservation Voters, accessed 07/20/06]
7.) Republican officials are turning North Carolina into a toxic-air dumping ground for 13 other states. In 2004, North Carolina filed a “Section 126 Petition” to the EPA, asking the government to enforce existing clean air standards in our surrounding states—the “good neighbor provision.” Instead, Senate Republicans scaled back the law, allowing air-pollution flow from other states to continue. [EPA, 71 Fed. Reg. 25328] 

 

Jerry Meek, Chair of the NC Democratic Party stressed the importance of protecting our vital natural resources, “We believe that by preserving our natural resources, we are preserving our quality of life, our economic growth, and our health. We note that the Democratic Party is the only party that has consistently supported serious and effective measures to protect our environment and natural resources.’ As the Bush Administration and Republicans continue to push policies that harm our environment, our cause is even more imperative. The Democratic Party is committed to environmental protection 365 days a year.”