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If you're from Maine, speak out for water and government integrity today

1/23/2018

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If you're a Maine resident, please take this opportunity to speak out to protect both water resources and the integrity of your state government.

​Maine Governor Paul LePage is in the process of appointing Mark Dubois, an executive with Nestlé/Poland Spring, to the state's Board of Environmental Protection. We join with Maine water protectors in opposing this appointment, which represents a clear conflict of interest between water extraction and exploitation, and the long-term interests of people and environment.

We are asking our friends and supporters in Maine to write to the members of the Environment and Natural Resources Committee and say this appointment is unacceptable; it represents a clear conflict of interest and that the people of Maine need assurance that board members will represent the public good and not private profit.

The Environment and Natural Resources Committee will hold a confirmation hearing tomorrow, Wednesday, January 24, so please send your comments as soon as possible. The hearing is open to the public, and starts at 10:00am in the Cross Building, Room 216. Committe members' emails are below:

Thomas.Saviello@legislature.maine.gov
amy.volk@legislature.maine.gov
geoffrey.gratwick@legislature.maine.gov
Ralph.Tucker@legislature.maine.gov
Bob.Duchesne@legislature.maine.gov
John.Martin@legislature.maine.gov
Jessica.Fay@legislature.maine.gov
StanleyPaige.Zeigler@legislature.maine.gov
Jonathan.Kinney@legislature.maine.gov
Richard.Campbell@legislature.maine.gov
Jeff.Pierce@legislature.maine.gov
Scott.Strom@legislature.maine.gov
Denise.Harlow@legislature.maine.gov
dylan.sinclair@legislature.maine.gov

In addition, please contact your state legislators to oppose the Dubois appointment. You can find your senator and representative at this link. 

Our friends at 
Community Water Justice have highlighted instances of Nestle's influence on state agencies and boards, and at the town level, writing "It's no wonder the Center for Public Integrity gave Maine an "F" rating in a recent report, due to the state’s lax laws upholding ethics and accountability. Conflicts of interest such as the Dubois appointment are a huge obstacle to maintaining the integrity of our government in serving the people of Maine." 

Maine, its people and its water deserve better. Please take action today!
 

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Delta Tunnels: Long-term plans still call for two tunnels

1/17/2018

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Yesterday, Restore the Delta shared an update on last week's story about California Governor Jerry Brown's plans to scale back the Delta Tunnels (aka CA WaterFix) project.

This massive infrastructure project consists of 40-foot diameter tunnels, running 150 feet under the Sacramento-San Joaquin Bay Delta and transferring water from the Sacramento River south to to users. The estimated cost of the project runs as high as $60 billion, in addition to environmental and agricultural impacts from diverting massive amounts of fresh water from the river/delta ecosystems.

Opposition to the project has been broad, including community groups, taxpayers and rate payers, and farming, fishing, and environmental organizations.

With the Governor facing both opposition to the project and tight funding, it seemed that the Delta project could be scaled back, from two tunnels to one. But yesterday, Associated Press reporter Ellen Knickmeyer reported that the state is leaving the possibility of a second tunnel open, looking to build one now, and another at a much later date. 
 
State water officials are reportedly working on a statement for release, and have not released a new cost estimate for the revised tunnel proposal.
 
Executive Director of Restore the Delta, Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla said, “The Department of Water Resources is functioning at the direction of Metropolitan Water District to begin contracting for construction on a single tunnel project with two intakes, and then to later phase in an additional tunnel as funding becomes available.
 
“This is a desperate maneuver to keep CA WaterFix alive. This is not the project described in the Environmental Impact Report for CA WaterFix, or in the permit application presented by the Department of Water Resources and the Bureau of Reclamation for the hearings at the State Water Resources Control Board.
 
“Californians have a right to know how long construction would take, what the impacts would be on Delta communities, fish, and wildlife under an even longer construction period, how much water would be delivered and when, and what the costs of a phased in project would be. A cost-benefit analysis still needs to be completed. Any attempt to move forward with the project without new environmental documents and project applications is an attempted end-run around California voters and water users. It is bad planning, and bad politics.”

We agree! We have opposed the Delta Tunnels project as an expensive boondoggle designed to transfer water from an ecologically sensitive area to support unsustainable industrial agriculture. In the face of California's changing climate, we need to invest in conserving and capturing water locally--smaller-scale infrastructure projects that can also generate jobs. You can read more about the Alliance's water campaigns here, and connect with state campaigns through the Defending Water portal. 
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Public Banking Spreading Across the US

1/3/2018

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Picture
Alliance for Democracy's Co-chair and founder of Portland Public Banking,  David Delk, is featured in two articles about the spreading of public banking across the United States. 

First article: 
Public Bank Fans Want to Get Portland City Council on BoardFirst up, money for a feasibility study.

Second article:  
Public Bank Movement Gains Ground in Cities and States across the US - N...Cities and states pay billions in interest to fund capital projects. They also face other shortfalls in local fi...

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