Kentucky Student Environmental Coalition
  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are >
      • Meet and Join the Team
      • Mission and Strategy
      • Past Events
    • Media >
      • The Young Kentuckian Blog
      • Power to the People Podcast
      • Press >
        • Media Coverage
        • Media Resources and Contacts
        • Media Advisories and Releases
    • Allies + Networks
    • Contact
  • Get Involved
    • Plug In
    • Catalyst Activist Camp
    • Campus Affiliates
  • Resources
    • Resources
    • COVID-19 Mutual Aid
  • Donate
  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are >
      • Meet and Join the Team
      • Mission and Strategy
      • Past Events
    • Media >
      • The Young Kentuckian Blog
      • Power to the People Podcast
      • Press >
        • Media Coverage
        • Media Resources and Contacts
        • Media Advisories and Releases
    • Allies + Networks
    • Contact
  • Get Involved
    • Plug In
    • Catalyst Activist Camp
    • Campus Affiliates
  • Resources
    • Resources
    • COVID-19 Mutual Aid
  • Donate

SAVE OUR STREAMS DAY OF ACTION 7/24/2013

7/13/2013

0 Comments

 
​By Cara Cooper, KSEC Organizer
Picture
It is frustrating to think that the very agencies who are supposed to be protecting us don't take their jobs seriously. It is the responsibility of the Kentucky Department of Water to protect our waterways, the very reason that they exist, yet this year our Department of Water proposed new selenium standards that will hurt our water, our people, and out economy. If you ask me they should be fired. 

It is even more frustrating that our legislature, which is supposed to act for the good of their constituents would approve these standards, even after recieving hundreds of public comments and facing a room full of citizen opponents to these regulations. But that's what they did, in April of this year. 

The newly proposed standards will increase the allowable selenium in our waterways to fourteen times the earlier standard! The standards also change the way that the selenium levels will be sampled. The new sampling method requires a fish tissue sample. Now don't get me wrong, fish tissue sampling is a very good indicator of selenium levels in a body of water. The main problem with this method is that many streams in Kentucky, especially in the coal mining parts of the state, are "dead". It is impossible to test fish tissue, if there is no fish populations to test. So not only is the standard too high, it is practically unenforceable. 

Leave it to Kentucky to value the right to pollute over the right to clean water and healthy ecosystems. Luckily, these new standards must be approved by the EPA before they can be enacted, so there is another place to try and get our voices heard on this important issue. Join the Kentucky Student Environmental Coalition in the "Save Our Streams Day of Action" on Wednesday July 24th and email or call the Region 4 EPA. Ask them to deny these changes and propose safe, enforceable standards for our water. More information on our website, including sample call and email scripts!
0 Comments

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    About

    The Young Kentuckian is a blog of the Kentucky Student Environmental Coalition where youth share their work and ideas for Kentucky's bright future. 

    If you would like to write a post for the blog, please email Acacia Maggard.


    Follow The Young Kentuckian on Facebook!
    Picture

    Categories

    All
    Activism
    Advocacy
    Campus
    Carbon Neutrality
    Catalyst
    Days Of Action
    Fall 2019
    Fossil Fuels
    Green Revolving Fund
    Health
    Just Transition
    Kentucky Politics
    KSEC
    KSEC Summit
    Local Food
    Pipelines And Natural Gas
    Power Shift
    Rapid Response Network
    Recycling
    Renewable Energy
    Self-Care
    Solidarity
    Solutions Tour
    Stereotypes
    Water

    Archives

    February 2020
    October 2019
    September 2019
    April 2019
    February 2019
    November 2018
    October 2018
    July 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    November 2014
    September 2014
    April 2014
    January 2014
    November 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013

    Donate to KSEC!
Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.