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Poison in the Water: Salmon Frogs at Risk

Caroline Kennedy, Defenders of Wildlife

Endangered chinook salmon can't stand up to the chemical companies, but you can!

Pesticides, herbicides and fungicides are already threatening endangered species like chinook salmon and polluting our drinking water. But chemical companies and their allies in Congress have launched a legislative blitz aimed at rolling back clean water protections for Americans and our wildlife.

Urge your senators to oppose S. 718, legislation to rollback Clean Water Act protections that keep deadly pesticides out of our water.

The chemical companies have already won in the House of Representatives, passing legislation that would prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from using the Clean Water Act to protect our water when it comes to certain types of pesticides applications.

Now the Senate is considering similar legislation (S. 718), and it's up to your senators to stop them.

Pesticides like carbaryl have killed endangered chinook salmon and other fish and crabs in Washington State. In 1996, ninety two thousand young steelhead were killed by an herbicide used to kill aquatic weeds.

The courts have ruled that pesticide discharges into water are pollutants and require permitting under Clean Water Act and that the EPA has the authority to regulate pesticide discharge under the Clean Water Act.

Congress should support – not undermine – the EPA in its work to protect the health of all Americans and our wildlife.

Take action now. Send a message to your senators and urge them to take a stand for clean water.

More – not less – should be done to protect our waters and our wildlife from pesticide pollution.

The U.S. Geological Survey found pesticides (or their byproducts) in every stream they sampled across America. Twenty seven percent of California’s waters are considered unsafe for drinking, swimming or fishing due to pesticide pollution. Many of these pesticides accumulate in fish and other organisms, making their way up the food chain, to eventually be consumed by the American public.

Your senators need to hear from you. Please take action now.

As always, thank you for all that you do…