Friend —

Right now, the Supreme Court is poised to gut critical clean water safeguards as it debates Sackett v. EPA, a case about which waters should be protected under the Clean Water Act. Without federal protections, corporate polluters could freely dump into our streams and destroy wetlands that protect against flooding and provide clean drinking water.

As climate change brings about more severe storms and flooding, now is when we can least afford to weaken protections for our communities. Failing to protect the wetlands that mitigate storm surge and flood waters would cost lives and devastate local economies — a price that no one should have to pay in the name of corporate profits.

What's more, the water crises in Flint, Michigan and Jackson, Mississippi make clear we need to be doing more, not less, to protect the waters our communities and families depend on to live healthy, thriving lives. If the Supreme Court does gut EPA's ability to protect our water, it will jeopardize all our health, especially the health of Indigenous communities, low-wealth communities, and communities of color who are already disproportionately burdened by water pollution.

TAKE ACTION TO PROTECT OUR WATERS

We know that the public overwhelmingly supports robust federal protections for clean water. Decades of polling shows that people across the ideological spectrum want the federal government to do more to ensure all our waters are safe for drinking, swimming, and fishing. Polluters know this, which is why they're relying on an undemocratic and increasingly extremist Supreme Court to weaken clean water safeguards.

Last year, the Biden administration proposed a new rule to provide protections to our wetlands, streams, and other waters that are currently vulnerable to pollution and destruction. We need them to finalize this rule ahead of the Supreme Court's decision to try and dissuade the Court from gutting the Clean Water Act. And we must demonstrate to the Court that we support the EPA's authority to enact strong safeguards for our waterways to ensure that everyone, no matter their race, zip code, or income, has access to clean water.

By restricting the Clean Water Act, the Court is poised to put our families, communities, and livelihoods at risk for the benefit of big polluters. We need the Biden administration to quickly finalize this rule and help show the Court we will not let them gut clean water safeguards! Make sure your voice is heard — we need 10,000 environmentalists to demand action today.

Thank you for supporting clean water and healthy communities. I'm grateful to be by your side in this fight.

Onward,

Madeleine Foote
Deputy Legislative Director
League of Conservation Voters