EARTHKEEPING NEWS A NEWSLETTER OF THE NORTH AMERICAN COALITION FOR CHRISTIANITY AND ECOLOGY Volume Thirteen, Number Three May/June 2004 CHURCH ADVOCACY GROUP DIRECTED TO TAKE ACTION AGAINST AIR POLLUTION A recent Administration proposal would allow the country's dirtiest power plants to continue to release hazardous levels of mercury into the environment. Known to cause mental retardation, learning disabilities and attention disorders, mercury is one of the most dangerous substances still in common use. While we now have a clearer understanding of the danger mercury poses to humans, scientists have only recently begun to investigate how mercury threatens wildlife. Research underway in Canada and the United States has linked mercury exposure to decreased reproduction, weakened immune systems and deteriorated muscle coordination in loons, a bird that spends most of its life in water, feeding on fish. In response to this increased threat to environmental and human health, the 214th General Assembly (2002) of the Presbyterian Church (USA) directed the PCUSA to: Educate Presbyterians through PCUSA offices and publications about the environmental and health consequences of pollution from outdated coal-fired power plants, the benefits of ensuring that these plants adhere to tighter air pollution limits, and the economic consequences of such actions. Ask all Presbyterians to exercise stewardship by urging government officials to support federal policies and multipollutant legislation that will in the most cost-effective way: enforce clean air laws by federal and state governments; resist efforts to abolish or undercut established clean air programs; enact new clean air laws for power plants that will substantially reduce pollutants that cause smog, acid rain, respiratory disease, mercury contamination, and global warming; end the "grandfather" loophole that exempts older coal-fired plants; and encourage federal funding of technologies that will facilitate and reduce the costs of these recommendations. Direct the Stated Clerk to communicate this new policy to power companies that have outdated coal-fired plants that were "grandfathered" under the Clean Air Act. Direct the Washington Office and Environmental Justice Office to incorporate these concerns into their advocacy work in environmental issues. For more information, contact Carolynn Race, PC(USA) Washington Office, 110 Maryland Avenue, NE, #104, Washington, DC 20002. Phone 202-543-1126, fax 202-543-7755, email crace@ctr.pcusa.org Home     Table of Contents