TO THE EDITOR:
The date is getting ever closer, the date when the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency decides to make progress for clean water a decade in the making or push it further from North Carolina’s grasp.
This seems especially imminent as summer comes to an end, during which clean water gained headlines and debate from people across the state.
The EPA has proposed revising the Clean Water Act in an effort to protect streams and wetlands that have been left unprotected due to vague guidelines. That being said, this issue needs to gain a lot more momentum before Oct. 20, when the public comment period ends.
For all the support that the revision has gained, industry leaders, like those of the American Farm Bureau, have been working in an equal and opposite direction. Though it is intimidating, this opposition can’t stunt the movement that has been growing for years. After years of fighting polluters and politicians, the issue is closer to a tipping point than ever before. The solution is to show the EPA overwhelming public support for the revisions.
I urge everyone who enjoyed a day out on a lake, a hike along a stream or a dip in a swimming hole this summer to act now. Speak out to your representatives. Send a letter to Sen. Kay Hagan. Make a comment to the EPA before the deadline. And take any opportunity you see to further the awareness on water protection.
Happy fall, y’all!
Holly Roberts
Junior
