This is a reminder that we need your help TODAY & TOMORROW to generate calls and emails to the House.  We are also joining with our colleagues Clean Water Action and others to participate in a Tweet-a-thon tomorrow! See details below.    

We are facing yet another attack from the House leadership, and we need to urge our Representatives to put our health and safety first.  The House is not giving up on his plan to insert the dangerous coal ash amendment in the Transportation bill.  Tomorrow (June 21th), the House will vote on a "motion to instruct" the transportation conference committee to include the coal ash amendment in the final bill.   For more information check out CWN's fact sheet on coal ash HERE.   

TAKE ACTION NOW! Call, Email & TWEET! 

We need you to ask your Representative to OPPOSE this motion to instruct.  To contact your Representative, please follow these three simple steps:

To find your representative, click here:  http://www.house.gov/htbin/findrep?ZIP= 

put your zip code in and follow the prompts. Call or email the staff members in charge of environment & transportation issues.  Contact information for all House members can be found HERE.   If calling, ask for the staffer listed under "transportation."    

Tell the Representative's office that you'd like them to oppose the motion to instruct.  Ask them to protect public health and to leave coal ash out of the transportation bill-- a bill whose goal is to keep America's infrastructure safe and create millions of American jobs.     

Letter from Congressman James Moran (VA) to House Members urging a NO vote on Coal Ash vote can be found HERE.   

Join the Twitter Blitz TOMORROW to #KickCoalAsh 

Coal ash - the toxic leftovers from burning coal to produce electricity - is contaminating our water with arsenic, lead, mercury and other hazardous chemicals.  June 21st marks two years since the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed minimum safeguards for coal ash disposal.  Unfortunately Congress has been working hard to make sure there are never federal regulations to protect communities from this toxic waste.  

Most recently the House of Representatives approved a massive Transportation Bill which included an amendment that would prevent EPA from ever setting enforceable safeguards for coal ash disposal. Help us tell Congress to kick coal ash out of the transportation bill and allow the White House to finalize a strong and protective coal ash rule that will safeguard public health and the environment.  We want to show Congress and the Administration that support for a strong coal ash rule is broad and deep. Toxic coal ash should not be allowed to poison our drinking water supplies.      

This effort will start at 9:00 am Eastern time on 6/21 and continue over the course of the day.  It's good policy to schedule tweets until at least 5:00 pm Pacific. At 9 am start the Twitter Blitz with a simple tweet from your organization's Twitter account (if you have a personal account, use it too) about what today's activity is all about - encouraging the Obama Administration(@WhiteHouse) to protect public health and the environment from toxic coal ash pollution.   

Thanks to our friends at Clean Water Action for organizing this important Tweet-a-thon on this critical issue! Let's help them rally as much support as possible from the clean water community.     

Kickoff Tweet: We're tweeting today as part of a #kickcoalash blitz to urge #Congress and @WhiteHouse to protect communities from toxic #coalash

Another Kickoff Tweet: We're tweeting today as part of a #kickcoalash blitz to urge #Congress and @WhiteHouse to protect communities from toxic #coalash  

2 yrs past & @WhiteHouse has yet to #kickcoalash. Communities near Little Blue need protections now: http://tinyurl.com/cvv336o    

Today citizens around the country are asking @WhiteHouse and #Congress to #kickcoalash: http://tinyurl.com/d43f8ap   (or add link to press release on local event or OpEds, etc. )   

Fifty Shades of ......coal ash in the Transportation Bill? #kickcoalash

http://www.cleanwaternetwork.org/sites/default/files/policy/CWN%20Coal%20Ash%20Fact%20Sheet2012fin.pdf   

#Congress should protect people, not #coalash polluters! @WhiteHouse please #kickcoalash out of my community   

ALEC thinks toxic #coalash is good for us: http://tinyurl.com/6ql2gkj 

@WhiteHouse pls #kickcoalash out of our communities

Americans want strong coal ash protections! @WhiteHouse nearly 200 contaminated sites are too many:http://tinyurl.com/7a75vg2#kickcoalash

Tell #Congress to #kickcoalash out of the Transportation Bill: http://tinyurl.com/7tvqboe @WhiteHouse pls protect us from toxic #coalash  

140 orgs urged #Congress to #kickcoalash out of Transportation Bill: http://www.cleanwaternetwork.org/sites/default/files/Letter%20to%20Transportation%20Bill%20Conferees%20on%20Coal%20Ash.pdf

RT if you agree!

RT if you want @WhiteHouse #Congress to #kickcoalash out of our water & communities

WV residents describe horror of living near toxic #coalash dump: http://tinyurl.com/6qsm4k4 RT if you want @EPAgov rules to #kickcoalash

Yuck, selenium in #coalash spawns two-headed fish! http://tinyurl.com/couhvaz @whitehouse @EPAgov #Congress it's time to 

#kickcoalash 

Florida's water is being poisoned by toxic #coalash:

http://tinyurl.com/cz852yx@SenBillNelson pls #kickcoalash out of the transportation bill!

Has your community been poisoned by #coal ash? Find out here: http://tinyurl.com/7a75vg2 and join the fight to #kickcoalash!

Simple Tweeting Reminders: 

1. Always use #kickcoalash in your tweets. 
2. Since we are tweeting the Administration, whenever possible make sure @WhiteHouse is included in your tweets (Important note: We are not using @BarackObama because it is the 2012 re-election campaign account.).  Where appropriate use @EPAgov, @LisaPJackson, or @ JonCarson44 (See Sample Tweets later)
3. We also want to target our Senators and Representatives, especially those who serve on the Transportation Bill conference committee.  Most Senators and Representatives have their Twitter handles posted on their websites.
4.  Other hash tags to consider using, in addition to #kickcoalash (space permitting): #coalash, #ProtectCleanWater, #CleanWater, #EPA, #Congress

Thanks for participating! Lets give them something to talk about on Capitol Hill, Bonnie Raitt style!