Tell Sec. Salazar to Enforce the Stream Buffer Zone Rule!

In Appalachia, mountaintop removal mining has already flattened more than 500,000 acres and permanently buried 2,000 miles of streams. Mountaintop removal threatens lives, destroys habitat, poisons communities and pollutes streams that are vital drinking water sources. The Department of Interior and Secretary Salazar must enforce the Stream Buffer Zone rule and not allow coal companies to dump their waste into Appalachian streams!

Now is the time to tell the Department of Interior to enforce the Stream Buffer Zone rule. Mountaintop removal mining is destroying Appalachia! Please write to Secretary Salazar and ask him to take strong action to guarantee that dirty coal companies will no longer be allowed to ignore law!

When Secretary Salazar campaigned to serve as a Colorado Senator, he said that some of his proudest accomplishments in public life came from bringing varied interests together to protect and preserve land and water. From a man who grew up in the shadow of the majestic Mt. Blanca, and on the banks of the crystal clear Conejos River, we would expect nothing less. So shouldn't the mountains and streams of Appalachia be given the same protections?

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Subject:

Dear [ Decision Maker ],

(Edit Letter Below)

I am concerned about your recent announcement to restore the stream buffer zone rule without a commitment to enforce the law and prevent mountaintop removal mining coal companies from dumping their waste into Appalachian streams and headwaters.

When you campaigned to serve as a Colorado Senator, you said that some of your proudest accomplishments in public life have been those times when you brought varied interests together to protect and preserve land and water.  From a man who grew up in the shadow of the majestic Mt. Blanca, and on the banks of the crystal clear Conejos River, I would expect nothing less.  Don't the mountains and streams of Appalachia deserve the same protections?

Before the attempt by the Bush administration to effectively repeal the stream buffer zone rule, mountaintop removal mining ran roughshod across Appalachia. According to the EPA's own figures, more than 2,000 miles of streams have been buried and more than 500,000 acres have been flattened. If this is left unchecked, America's landscapes and vital sources of drinking water will be devastated.

Repealing the Bush rollbacks on the stream buffer zone rule will be a meaningless gesture if you do not plan to enforce that law and prohibit companies from placing waste within 100 feet of a stream. Please put the Buffer back in the Stream Buffer Zone Rule! Communities in Appalachia and some of the world's oldest mountains are at risk of being destroyed forever.

Please don't look the other way while coal companies destroy Appalachia and ignore the stream buffer zone rule. Protect our vital streams and drinking water and enforce the law.

Sincerely,
[Your name]
[Your address]

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Secretary Ken Salazar

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