Stand with Protect the Porkies: No Taxpayer Dollars for the Copperwood Mine – Again!
Your voice is needed again to take action against a sulfide mining project that threatens to disrupt the beloved Porcupine Mountains State Park and pollute Lake Superior. With your support and the efforts of Protect the Porkies, we successfully stopped this taxpayer-funded grant not once, but twice in 2024! The state legislature is considering a $50 million corporate handout disguised as a “community benefit” grant for local Wakefield Township to start up copper mining next to and beneath the State Park. Send a quick message to the Michigan Legislative Appropriations Committees about why this project doesn’t deserve our tax dollars.
Tell Your Elected Officials: Michigan Residents Deserve Meaningful Public Engagement
Michigan’s Department of the Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE) is not doing enough to ensure rate-paying residents are aware of and can engage in a public comment process that directly impacts drinking water funding, safety, and rates. EGLE declined requests by Freshwater Future to expand community outreach or incorporate public feedback on critical decisions related to the State Revolving Fund (SRF) definition of “overburdened communities.”
The criteria in this definition determine which “overburdened communities” qualify for drinking water project funds, and the outcome of this process will greatly impact which Michigan water utilities get funded over the next 3 years. Please send messages to your Michigan State Senator and Representative and the EGLE Division Director, to tell them: Bill-paying constituents deserve to be treated as stakeholders during the State Revolving Fund’s process to improve the definition of “overburdened communities.”
May 29th @ 11:30 ET – Join Our Monthly Mindfulness + Movement Practice for Water Protectors!
Each month, we gather for a wellness practice called Mindfulness and Movement to help you reduce stress and re-energize your water work. Please join us for our next session, Thursday, May 29th at 11:30 am (Eastern), led by Jonathan Relucio, a mindfulness expert with 20+ years of experience. Register to join our next 45-minute session and share the invite with your colleagues and friends!
New Law Shifts Water System Control in Birmingham, AL
Birmingham, Alabama built their water system, but now it is no longer theirs to run. A new Alabama law shifts control of the city’s water system to suburban outsiders and state officials, which raises pressing questions about power, race, and who really governs our most essential resource. Read more about how this takeover could set a dangerous precedent and how residents are fighting back!
Ontario Students Raising Money and Educating to Protect Water
Freshwater Future Canada extends a heartfelt thank you to the students of Leamington District Secondary School in Ontario, who recently organized a bake sale and raised CA$250 in support of our mission for clean and safe water. As part of a leadership class project, they also helped raise awareness about the importance of protecting Lake Erie. We can’t think of a better way to inspire future leaders and water stewards. Thank you, Leamington students!
