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[[link removed]]Dear John,

Seasonal floods along the Mississippi River play a key role in the life cycle
for many plant and animal species, but they also can bring hardship and
devastation to floodplain communities. The South Mississippi Delta has been plagued by flooding several years in a
row, and just this year endured one of its wettest winters on record. As climate change drives more extreme weather and precipitation patterns, these
communities face an increasingly dire situation.

Unfortunately, proactive efforts to get people and property out of harm’s way,
through strategies like elevating homes and offering voluntary buy outs, have
been sidelined in favor of an antiquated, ineffective plan to build the Yazoo
Pumps – a project that would drain and destroy 200,000 acres of wetlands that
are key to the health of the Mississippi River and Gulf of Mexico.

South Delta communities deserve immediate, affordable common-sense solutions to
reduce and manage their flood risk. Urge EPA to uphold the Yazoo Pumps veto and work with the Corps to provide
immediate, effective flood relief for affected homeowners, farmers, and
businesses.
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The project is so destructive that in 2008 the George W. Bush Administration
issued a veto through the Clean Water Act to stop the Pumps -- only 1 of 13
vetoes EPA has ever issued. The decision protected rich habitats of the
Mississippi Delta that support over 450 species of birds, fish, and wildlife. In
response to a legal challenge, the EPA’s veto was upheld by a federal judge and
affirmed by the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals.

But the EPA is reviving the Yazoo Pumps by reconsidering its 2008 veto decision.
Though it's being billed as a flood protection project, it is not designed to
protect communities from flooding; the purpose is to drain wetlands and
intensify farming. Indeed, an analysis of the 2019 Flood by the Army Corps of
Engineers found that most of the area would still be under water even with the
Pumps in place.

Take Action Today!
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Help us urge the EPA
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that will protect local communities!

Thank you for everything you do for our rivers,




[[link removed]] Olivia Dorothy
Director, Upper Mississippi Basin
American Rivers [[link removed]] [[link removed]] [[link removed]]
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©AMERICAN RIVERS
1101 14th Street NW, Suite 1400, Washington, DC xxxxxx | 202-347-7550 Big Sunflower River, MS | Photo by Stephen Kirkpatrick

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