Defender the
CLEAN WATER
• CLEAN AIR • CLEAN ENERGY
Fall 2010 • Vol. 40, No. 4
2011:
a clean slate
Clean Wisconsin 122 State Street, Suite 200 Madison, WI 53703-2500
Nonprofit Org U.S. Postage PAID Permit No. 1291 Madison, WI
Taking Charge and Taking Action. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Enviro-SCRAMBLE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 From the Executive Director. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Hello, Goodbye: Staff changes. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Phosphorus rules pass . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 2011: A Clean Slate, continued . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 Kick the coal ash habit!. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Waukesha’s diversion application update. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Profile of Legislative Leadership: Fred Clark. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Thanks! . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
O n iss u e s t h a t m at t e r t O you By Amber Meyer Smith, Program Director
The new legislative session will be here soon. The staff at Clean Wisconsin is already looking ahead to the work that must be done when the state Legislature resumes business in January. As you know, the last legislative session ended in April with some victories, but also with some big disappointments. While we can’t predict who will be elected in November, we do know that at least 23 new legislators and a new governor will be taking office in January. We will have a lot of work to do to educate them about the issues that matter for our environment. We’ll need to educate them on the importance of promoting clean energy to reduce our reliance on foreign oil and old, dirty coal. To move toward energy independence, we need to grow our renewable energy resources such as wind, solar, biomass and biogas and increase our energy efficiency. We’ll need to educate them on the vital issue of water quality and healthy drinking water. Runoff from farms and urban areas continues to pollute Wisconsin’s lakes, rivers and streams. We need the next Legislature to focus on solutions to these threats to our health and safety and end the water pollution Wisconsin has tolerated for far too long. We’ll need to educate them on our innovative ideas related to water conservation. It is unacceptable that rivers and lakes in Wisconsin continue to dry up due to the overpumping of large wells; that water rate structures favor high water use; and that the state allows leaky, aged infrastructure to go unaddressed. Clean Wisconsin is working to educate legislators and the public about the need conserve water — our most precious resource — through innovative yet commonsense approaches to smart water use. As always, the cornerstone of any successful legislative effort is support of people like you, our members throughout the state, who care about leaving our children and grandchildren with clean air, clean water and a clean energy future. We will be relying on your active participation to get these policies signed into law and look forward to working with new legislators in 2011.
Make your voice heard! Join our Action Network
and
INSIDE
Educating The new Class your voice, our work At least 23 new legislators and a new governor will be taking office in January. We will be working hard to educate them on the issues that matter to you regarding our environment.
Issues that matter Promoting clean energy to lessen our reliance on foreign oil and dirty coal Finding solutions to the problems that threaten our water quality and the health of our drinking water Sharing innovative ideas for water conservation and groundwater protection to preserve this precious, vital resource.
Learn more about the work we’re doing on these issues on page 4.