Senate bill 718, which exempts pesticide applications from Clean Water Act protections, was approved by the Senate Agriculture Committee this week and now passes to consideration by the full Senate. Several Democratic Senators have already expressed opposition to the legislation, including California Senator Barbara Boxer, after Baykeeper helped lead a national coalition of 120 environmental groups to urge Senators not to support the bill.
Baykeeper and our partners around the country are continuing to fight passage of the bill, which threatens the health of vulnerable waterways around the nation. Thank you to all the Baykeeper members who have taken action to oppose this attempt by the agriculture and chemical industries to undermine vital Clean Water Act protections. We’ll continue closely monitoring the issue and let you know as soon as further action is needed.
Read the L.A. Times story here: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/greenspace/2011/06/house-bill-senate-agriculture-committee-pesticide-clean-water-act-epa.html