Coal Industry Pushes to Destroy Water Quality Protection in Tennessee Rivers and Streams

The coal industry and its friends are threatening to destroy water quality protection in Tennessee, the heart of NRDC's Greater Cumberland Plateau BioGem. The Governor and the Tennessee Legislature should oppose this unprecedented assault on Tennessee's streams and rivers.

The coal industry and its allies have drafted a wish list of three ecologically devastating bills -- all aimed at gutting environmental protection in Tennessee. These bills would undermine laws that protect water quality in the most biologically diverse inland state in the United States.  And they are moving on a fast-track through the Tennessee legislature.

• First, the "Selenate pollution" bill would allow the coal industry to poison our drinking water with a known neurotoxin, selenium, and it would threaten wildlife found nowhere else on Earth. Selenate is a byproduct of coal production. This bill could also absolve the coal industry from any existing legal liabilities related to its previous dumping of selenate contamination.
• Second, in the "limited resource waters" bill, Big Coal and its allies in the pro-development world wants to "redefine" the word "stream."  This redefinition will remove existing protections from numerous waterways that are the source for drinking water supplies, recreation, and other community purposes. Many of these at-risk waters are seasonal breeding for some of Tennessee's unique amphibians and other species.
• Finally, the "legislative review" bill will strip public health agencies of their ability to act decisively to protect our drinking water supplies and environment. This is a back door approach that ties the hands of public health agencies when responding to industrial threats and coal industry disasters such as the recent TVA coal ash spill.

As the rest of the nation, indeed, the rest of the world, recognizes the growing threats of freshwater scarcity, some members of Tennessee's legislature are moving in exactly the opposite, and wrong, direction. In doing so, they not only confirm once again that there is no such thing as clean coal, but they put Tennessee's economy, unique biodiversity and public health at risk.

WHAT YOU CAN DO: Tennessee residents, take action right now and tell your leaders to resist the coal industry's attempt to destroy your state's environmental protections.