We look forward to you coming out to speak out for clean water and protective nitrogen and phosphorus limits. Below are the dates and locations of the Tampa hearing in Florida. We need folks to attend, show their support, and speak out for Florida's waters. There are two hearing times, so it should be easier to find an opportunity to show your support! GRN and our partners will be at the hearings with talking points, sample comments, and buttons or stickers you can wear to show support.
Please fill in the form below so we can get your contact info and we will follow up with you regarding the hearing details. This is an incredible and critical opportunity to make a real difference for the health of our waters in Florida!
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
Hilton Tampa Airport
2225 North Lois Avenue, Tampa, FL 33607
12:00 noon to 4:00 pm
6:00 pm to 9:00 pm
On Thursday April 29th, the expanding slick from BP's oil drilling disaster made first contact with land near the mouth of the Mississippi. This catastrophe has already endangered marine life like dolphins, sperm whales, and sea turtles, and now it is threatening coastal wildlife, and the Gulf’s vital marshes and barrier islands. A disaster of such epic proportions will require an unprecedented response from federal and state agencies, as well as those of us who care about the health of the Gulf coast and communities.
There has already been an incredible outpouring of support from those in the region, and throughout the county, in the form of kind words, donations, and, of course, offers to volunteer with clean-up efforts. It is critical that people are trained in how to help before heading down the bayou. The roads are narrow, and will likely be jammed with media, responders, and well-intentioned observers. The scale and scope of this spill are massive, yet the infrastructure in these at risk communities is exceptionally limited, so please don't come down without a plan and training. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be working with government agencies and other organizations who are coordinating volunteer efforts. If you are interested in helping with the recovery efforts, please fill out the information below, and we will be in contact.
Thank you so much for your concern about theGulf of Mexico and enthusiasm to raise funds to support response efforts to BP's oil drilling disaster. TheGulf Restoration Network (GRN) is very appreciative that you are interested in directing proceeds from your efforts to support our work.
Organizational information
Blurb
Gulf Restoration Network is a 16 year old environmental advocacy non-profit that works to unite and empower people to protect and restore the natural resources of theGulf of Mexico region for future generations. GRN plays a pivotal role in coordinating strategic collaborations across theGulf, providing our members with technical assistance, and running effective campaigns to successfully address environmental threats in Gulf communities.
As the only non-profit exclusively focused on the health of theGulf of Mexico, GRN has mobilized all available resources to monitor and respond to BP's oil drilling disaster. GRN is calling on BP and the federal government to clean up this oil disaster and make coastal communities whole again. We are also working towards policy changes to prevent future oil disasters and ensure a better plan B for accidents that do happen.
In the four and a half years since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast, significant steps have been taken to restore the health of the Gulf of Mexico and our coastal communities, but these efforts will need the support and ongoing attention of the President to succeed. In the past year, the President has created a federal multi-agency working group to focus on Gulf coast restoration efforts, as well as put the first ever reconstruction money in the federal budget. But more resources and action are necessary.
Help us make sure that the President commits to protecting and rebuilding Louisiana's coastal lines of defense - our wetlands, barrier islands and cypress swamps. The attention our region gained with the Saints Superbowl victory has reminded the nation how special New Orleans and South Louisiana is. Now it's time for us to remind the nation how vulnerable New Orleans and other Gulf coast communities remain to hurricanes and tropical storms. Despite the development of plans to rebuild our wetlands, we still lose a football field worth of wetlands every 45 minutes due to a national need for dependable shipping lanes and oil and gas.
Menhaden are a small, oily fish that play an extremely important role in the health of the Gulf of Mexico.
Many anglers know menhaden by the name pogie, or more simply, bait. Few things work as well as menhaden to catch fish. But the menhaden fishery is a big business; the second largest fishery in the United States. Two companies, Omega Protein and Daybrook Fisheries catch on average more than 1 billion pounds of menhaden in the Gulf each year. The industry also catches and kills an estimated 10 million pounds of other sea life, like sharks and red drum.
Help protect the Gulf's marine foodweb and send a letter to the Mississippi Commission on Marine Resources urging them to protect Gulf Menhaden and the marine fish and wildlife that depend on them.
Please add a sentence at the beginning of your letter describing your concern or connection to the Gulf of Mexico - Personalizing your message makes it far more effective.
The proposed Kemper coal facility threatens the health of the region's streams, wetlands and ecosystems, all at an estimated price tag of $2.4 billion. Kemper coal is set to impact roughly 6,000 acres of wetlands - an area approximately three times the size of nearby De Kalb, MS - and more than 40 miles of streams. Plus, Mississippi Power Company expects ratepayers to shoulder the cost!
Take action below to tell the Mississippi Public Service Commission to halt this dirty, unnecessary, and expensive project.
Please make your message as powerful as possible and take a moment to personalize the first few lines of the suggested letter.
In the four and a half years since Hurricanes Katrina and Rita devastated the Gulf Coast, significant steps have been taken to restore the health of the Gulf of Mexico and our coastal communities, but these efforts will need the support and ongoing attention of the President to succeed. In the past year, the President has created a federal multi-agency working group to focus on Gulf coast restoration efforts, as well as put the first ever reconstruction money in the federal budget. But more resources and action are necessary.
Help us make sure that the President commits to protecting and rebuilding Louisiana's coastal lines of defense - our wetlands, barrier islands and cypress swamps. The attention our region gained with the Saints Superbowl victory has reminded the nation how special New Orleans and South Louisiana is. Now it's time for us to remind the nation how vulnerable New Orleans and other Gulf coast communities remain to hurricanes and tropical storms. Despite the development of plans to rebuild our wetlands, we still lose a football field worth of wetlands every 45 minutes due to a national need for dependable shipping lanes and oil and gas.
As local and county governments tighten their belts around the country, Pearl River County, Mississippi is set to waste taxpayers' hard-earned dollars on an expensive and environmentally destructive real estate scheme. The proposal to dam a tributary of the Pearl River will destroy roughly 600 acres of wetlands and alter freshwater and sediment flow in the Pearl River. Mississippi has long been home to a vital recreational and commercial fishing industry. Every year thousands of families enjoy fishing in coastal rivers and the Mississippi Sound. This project could leave these vital industries vulnerable - as reduced flows of freshwater and sediments in the Pearl River upset the delicate balance needed to maintain productive coastal marshes.
It's time for Pearl River and Mississippi leaders to invest in economic development projects that benefit all Mississippians. Act now to protect Mississippi's coast and economy for future generation. You can help be sending a message to your Congress members asking them to protect the Pearl - take action below.
Please make your message as powerful as possible and take a moment to personalize the first few lines of the suggested letter.
Since 2006, the federal government has been moving forward with plans to hollow out an underground salt dome near Richton, MS in order to expand the nation's petroleum reserves. This plan, which would cost approximately $17 billion of taxpayer money, involves removing 50 million gallons of water a day from the Pascagoula River and then using this water to dissolve natural underground salt deposits. The polluted, extremely salty by-product would then be dumped off the coast of one of Mississippi's barrier islands. Recently, the Department of Energy proposed the cancellation of all funding for this project, but Congress can still put the funding back in!
By sending this letter to Congress, you can help put a halt to this salt dome madness and preserve the Pascagoula River for future generations.
Please enter your zip code below, then make your message as powerful as possible by taking a moment to personalize the first few lines of the suggested letter.
Use the forms below to send emails that will help save the Gulf's cypress!
With the help of thousands of cypress tree defenders, like yourself, tens of thousands of acres of cypress swamps have already been saved from the mulch machine in Louisiana. Unfortunately, though, a number of pressing questions remain. new threats continue to arise, and cypress swamps in other areas of the Gulf remain in danger of being clearcut solely to produce mulch.
Please join GRN, the Save Our Cypress Coalition, and thousands of other individuals in asking Lowe's, Home Depot, and Wal-Mart why, despite their own corporate sustainability policies, they continue to sell unsustainable cypress mulch at all?
For decades, university environmental law clinics have protected communities from water and air pollution, destruction of wetlands, and other environmental threats. Now, the polluting special interests are seeking to severely limit clinics like the Tulane Environmental Law Clinic from engaging in legal battles with businesses or the government.
SB 549, by Senator Adley would do just that, by placing severe restrictions on what the clinics can and cannot do when it comes to defending our coast and communities. We cannot let this happen, as often times law clinics are the only source of legal protection for poor communities. Take action by sending an email to key members of the Louisiana State Legislature now.
Clean water is vital to Florida's economy and wildlife. Despite this, nitrogen and phosphorus pollution flowing from sewage treatment plants, lawns, storm drains, and other sources causes our rivers and streams to be choked with algae. Currently EPA is proposing numeric nitrogen and phosphorus pollution limits for Florida's waters, which is a critical step in ensuring clean waters for us and our children. Over the course of the summer the EPA will be reviewing comments and moving forward with final rules they will announce in the fall. If they hear from you we have a great chance of getting stronger, better rules. Please take a moment to use the form below to tell EPA that we all need Florida's waters to be cleaned up!
Thanks again for all that you do for clean water in Florida!
If you have time, please personalize the first line of the message to tell EPA why they should ensure that Florida's waters are protected from nitrogen and phosphorus pollution.
Tell our leaders that it is imperative that they demand the resources necessary for state and federal wildlife and fisheries agencies to effectively monitor the BP drilling disaster's marine wildlife impacts and to do everything in their power to clean up the spill site to protect our coasts and the Gulf of Mexico. Over the course of several flyovers and boat rides, we have continually witnessed insufficient clean up efforts and protections for our shores! Remind our leaders that off-shore oil drilling is a dirty and dangerous business, and expanding drilling will only expose more of our coastal areas to this type of catastrophe.
While BP's oil drilling disaster continues to wreak havoc on coastal communities and the environment, it seems the company may be more concerned with protecting their image than protecting the Gulf.
Please use the form below to send a message today calling on BP to:
- Make impacted coastal communities whole again,
- Provide honest and fully transparent assessments of the disaster, and
- Pay for all impacts and clean-up without standing in the way of an effective response.
We all deserve more than PR spin. BP must fully clean up its mess in the Gulf of Mexico.
Mississippi has approximately 758 square miles of coastal waters which are all at risk because of BP's Oil Drilling Disaster. Cleaning up this mess will be very expensive and BP needs to pay for all the damages but we must make sure that we are giving these waters the most stringent legal protection first.
Ask the Mississippi Department of Environmental Quality to give Mississippi's endangered coastal waters the best legal protection available by sending in comments today. Make your comments more meaningful by sharing a personal story about a time you enjoyed being out on Mississippi's coast.
While BP's oil drilling disaster continues to wreak havoc on coastal communities and the environment, it seems the company may be more concerned with protecting their image than protecting the Gulf.
Please use the form below to send a message today calling on BP to:
- Make impacted coastal communities whole again,
- Provide honest and fully transparent assessments of the disaster, and
- Pay for all impacts and clean-up without standing in the way of an effective response.
We all deserve more than PR spin. BP must fully clean up its mess in the Gulf of Mexico.
While BP's oil drilling disaster continues to wreak havoc on coastal communities and the environment, it seems the company may be more concerned with protecting their image than protecting the Gulf.
Please use the form below to send a message today calling on BP to:
- Make impacted coastal communities whole again,
- Provide honest and fully transparent assessments of the disaster, and
- Pay for all impacts and clean-up without standing in the way of an effective response.
We all deserve more than PR spin. BP must fully clean up its mess in the Gulf of Mexico.
BP, and the entire oil and gas industry, must do everything in their power to stop the oil that is erupting from the Gulf floor. Simultaneously, however, the Gulf Coast must be defended from the oily onslaught that has already been released, but BP’s efforts there have fallen short. The government must take control of the clean up while BP remains solely responsible for writing checks.
Please use the form below to send a message to the White House and Congress today asking them to:
Federalize the disaster clean-up and designate a federal military disaster response director, similar to General Honore in the aftermath of Katrina
Hold BP financially accountable for all clean-up and impacts over the long-term
Force full transparency of impact data and clean-up efforts
Ensure changes in regulations and oversight help prevent accidents in the future while also requiring a better plan B.
This is the biggest environmental disaster our country has ever seen, and the full force of the United States government, as well as BP, must be deployed to make this region whole again.
BP, and the entire oil and gas industry, must do everything in their power to stop the oil that is erupting from the Gulf floor. Simultaneously, however, the Gulf Coast must be defended from the oily onslaught that has already been released, but BP’s efforts there have fallen short. The government must take control of the clean up while BP remains solely responsible for writing checks.
Please use the form below to send a message to the White House and Congress today asking them to:
Federalize the disaster clean-up and designate a federal military disaster response director, similar to General Honore in the aftermath of Katrina
Hold BP financially accountable for all clean-up and impacts over the long-term
Force full transparency of impact data and clean-up efforts
Ensure changes in regulations and oversight help prevent accidents in the future while also requiring a better plan B.
This is the biggest environmental disaster our country has ever seen, and the full force of the United States government, as well as BP, must be deployed to make this region whole again.
Restricted air space? Felony charges for getting too close to cleanup operations? BP contractors crushing birds' nests? What gives?
BP's public relations department has been working around the clock to hide the true impacts of the drilling disaster from the public, and it's well past time we had some real transparency! The federal government should be taking all possible steps to protect Gulf wildlife and open the cleanup and recovery effort to light of public scrutiny - not to protect BP's image.
Please use the form below to send a message to the President and other federal agencies today asking them to:
Make the clean-up and recovery effort more transparent by lifting restrictions on flights and boat excursions to impacted areas.
Protect bird nests, eggs, and fledgings from being harmed by inadequately trained BP contractors.
Make sure that BP is held accountable for long-term recovery costs by accurately testing whether or not deceased wildlife was impacted by BP's oil.
This week President Obama announced the final National Ocean Policy! This historic policy is due to the work and support of tens of thousands of ocean users across the country over the last year. However, your support it still needed! Please THANK President Obama for his work to establish our nation's first comprehensive National Ocean Policy and for implementing the Task Force's work through the Executive Order released today. Our nation is more than ready for this National Ocean Policy to provide a guiding vision for all federal agencies and a needed mandate for protection and restoration of our coasts, oceans, islands and Great Lakes.
Last January the broad public enthusiasm for a National Ocean Policy launched dozens of Wear Blue for the Oceans celebrations across our nation in support of a strong National Ocean Policy. The recent BP oil disaster has illustrated to the nation how dependent we are upon healthy oceans and coasts. We can and must do better in the way we protect and manage our coasts.
Please thank the president for helping make the National Ocean Policy a reality and thanks to you for helping to protect America’s oceans and coasts!
BP's oil drilling disaster has revealed a sad truth: when it comes to the oil and gas industry, Gulf residents don't have much of a say in decisions that profoundly impact the health of the Gulf and its communities.
Now is the time for Congress to give vulnerable Gulf coast communities a real seat at the table. Congress needs to immediately set up a Gulf Citizens' Advisory Council to engage the energy, wisdom and ingenuity of the people of the Gulf region to make sure we never see a repeat of the BP oil drilling disaster.
Similar citizens' councils have been in place for almost twenty years in parts of Alaska and have played a huge role in improving environmental safeguards, and increasing trust and and communication between citizens, the oil industry, and government. It's only fair that Gulf coast residents be given the same opportunity to take part in major decisions impacting the health of the region.
Please use the form below to fax your members of Congress and urge them that now is the time to give Gulf residents the power to protect our coast and communities.
BP’s drilling disaster is only the most recent and visible example of destruction of the Gulf region at the hands of oil companies chasing enormous profits. It has been almost a century since oil and gas companies began to wreak havoc on our coastal ecosystem by dredging canals for exploration and pipelines, causing the erosion that has turned our wetlands to open water – wetlands that are an invaluable natural resource providing habitat for wildlife, food sources and livelihoods for communities, and the best natural protection against floods & hurricanes for the region.
As the nation focuses on restoring the Gulf, it's important that oil and gas companies pay for restoring the damage they've done so that taxpayers don't get stuck footing the whole bill.
Please use the form below to send a message to the President and Congress asking them to make sure the oil and gas industry pays its fair share.
BP’s crude may not be gushing into the Gulf anymore, but as much as 80% of the oil is still out there, lurking below the surface. Even the most conservative government estimate says that up to 8 times the Exxon-Valdez remains! This is no time for BP and the federal government to declare victory.
As Gulf communities, and the dolphins, whale sharks, and other marine life that call this region home, begin the long road to recovery, it’s essential that the federal government make a commitment to this effort not just today, but for many years to come.
Please use the form below to tell the Federal response leaders that the disaster is not over, and:
BP must be held accountable for all the dolphins, sea turtles, and other wildlife that have died, and are still dying, at their hands.
The federal government, with BP's money, must commit to long-term monitoring of the impacts of BP’s crude on marine life.
Fisherfolk, indigenous peoples, and other impacted communities must have a say in how the restoration of the Gulf moves forward.
BP’s crude may not be gushing into the Gulf anymore, but as much as 80% of the oil is still out there, lurking below the surface. Even the most conservative government estimate says that up to 8 times the Exxon-Valdez remains! This is no time for BP and the federal government to declare victory.
As Gulf communities, and the dolphins, whale sharks, and other marine life that call this region home, begin the long road to recovery, it’s essential that the federal government make a commitment to this effort not just today, but for many years to come.
Please use the form below to tell the Federal response leaders that the disaster is not over, and:
BP must be held accountable for all the dolphins, sea turtles, and other wildlife that have died, and are still dying, at their hands.
The federal government, with BP's money, must commit to long-term monitoring of the impacts of BP’s crude on marine life.
Fisherfolk, indigenous peoples, and other impacted communities must have a say in how the restoration of the Gulf moves forward.
On Thursday April 29th, the expanding slick from BP's oil drilling disaster made first contact with land near the mouth of the Mississippi. This catastrophe has already endangered marine life like dolphins, sperm whales, and sea turtles, and now it is threatening coastal wildlife, and the Gulf’s vital marshes and barrier islands. A disaster of such epic proportions will require an unprecedented response from federal and state agencies, as well as those of us who care about the health of the Gulf coast and communities..jpg)
Menhaden are a small, oily fish that play an extremely important role in the health of the Gulf of Mexico. 
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As local and county governments tighten their belts around the country, Pearl River County, Mississippi is set to waste taxpayers' hard-earned dollars on an expensive and environmentally destructive real estate scheme. The proposal to dam a tributary of the Pearl River will destroy roughly 600 acres of wetlands and alter freshwater and sediment flow in the Pearl River. Mississippi has long been home to a vital recreational and commercial fishing industry. Every year thousands of families enjoy fishing in coastal rivers and the Mississippi Sound. This project could leave these vital industries vulnerable - as reduced flows of freshwater and sediments in the Pearl River upset the delicate balance needed to maintain productive coastal marshes. 
Clean water is vital to Florida's economy and wildlife. Despite this, nitrogen and phosphorus pollution flowing from sewage treatment plants, lawns, storm drains, and other sources causes our rivers and streams to be choked with algae. Currently EPA is proposing numeric nitrogen and phosphorus pollution limits for Florida's waters, which is a critical step in ensuring clean waters for us and our children. Over the course of the summer the EPA will be reviewing comments and moving forward with final rules they will announce in the fall. If they hear from you we have a great chance of getting stronger, better rules. Please take a moment to use the form below to tell EPA that we all need Florida's waters to be cleaned up!
