Quote of the Week:“At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think, with deep gratitude, of those who have lighted the flame within us.” – Albert Schweitzer ------ No Action Cafe This Monday Chef Lisa is off to spend some time with her kids, so please note that the Action Cafe will be closed December 30th. The Cafe will be back open at noon, Monday, January 6th. Happy New Year! Federal Actions: EPA: Regulate Carbon Injection Wells  Photo Source: Wikimedia Commons Author: Net Power Inc. SOURCE: From our friends at Earthjustice Carbon capture technologies are intended to capture carbon emissions from fossil-fueled power plants and industrial facilities. The carbon is then injected underground in carbon waste injection wells, repurposed to extract more polluting fossil fuels, or reused in products. The fossil fuel industry champions carbon capture as a way to keep burning coal and gas with a supposedly smaller climate impact. But burying carbon underground doesn’t make its environmental impact go away. The risks from injecting it include earthquakes, drinking water contamination, and releases of concentrated CO2 that can send people to the hospital. The federal government is responsible for regulating carbon injection wells, but it’s proposing to hand over that authority to another fossil fuel-friendly state: West Virginia. States like West Virginia have an abysmal track record of regulating and enforcing existing oil and gas and injection well programs. There are more than 6,500 known abandoned or orphaned oil and gas wells and there are likely tens of thousands more. Action: Urge the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to maintain federal oversight over emerging carbon capture injection technology. Thank Sen. Murray for Helping WA Tribes Gain Access to Funding for Water Ecosystem Restoration  Photo Source: Cacophony via Wikimedia Commons. The Water Resources Development Act of 2024 passed through Congress this month and is expected to be signed into law by President Biden any day now. It is a big win for Pacific Northwest tribes. Senator Patty Murray, Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, and U.S. Representative Rick Larsen (D-WA-02), Ranking Member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, secured significant changes to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Tribal Partnership Program (TPP).This program provides federal support for Tribes in environmental restoration, flood mitigation, and protection of natural and cultural resources. For years, limitations on TPP had made the program largely inaccessible to Tribes in Washington state and the Pacific Northwest. Murray and Larsen worked closely with Tribes across Washington state to advocate, negotiate, and successfully secure changes to improve access to TPP which will benefit Tribes like the Yakama Nation and, for the first time, allow inter-Tribal organizations such as the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission to participate. “We deeply appreciate Senator Murray’s commitment to working with us and including key provisions in WRDA to strengthen and expand the ability of Tribes to partner with the Army Corps of Engineers on key conservation and ecosystem restoration projects,” said Gerald Lewis, Chairman of the Yakama Nation Tribal Council. “These actions will help us protect and enhance critical water resources and better fulfill the federal Treaty and trust obligations to tribes while restoring Columbia Basin salmon and native fish.” Action: Thank Sen. Murray for helping WA Tribes secure funding access for conservation and ecosystem restoration.
Script: I want to thank you for your work with Rep. Larsen and tribes across Washington state to advocate, negotiate, and secure a series of changes to improve access to the Army Corp of Engineers’ Tribal Partnership Program. The passage of the Water Resources Development Act of 2024 is a big win for Washington state tribes, and all of us will benefit from the conservation and ecosystem restoration work which will follow. Bravo! Local Actions:Stop Union Busting!  Photo Source: Rochelle Hartman via Wikimedia Background Employees at Planned Parenthood of Greater WA and Northern ID (PPGWNI) are unionizing over low pay and bad working conditions. The CEO is paying a union-busting firm the equivalent of 17 medical assistants’ hourly wages to persuade them not to ($425 an hour). Action: Take this TAN Action, write to PPGWNI Script: Planned Parenthood of Greater WA and Northern ID is a great organization that has taken a wrong turn. Please stop your union-busting tactics so that I can continue to support your good work. Sincerely, [NAME], [CITY, ZIP] Have You Scheduled This Event?The League of Women's Voters, NAACP, and Olympia for All are sponsoring: "Housing Instability - A Solutions Forum" With over 53% of area renters confronted with Housing Instability today, the Forum will feature a panel of diverse perspectives on how to reduce Housing Instability. The panelists will include:
When: January 15, 6:30 to 8:00pm Where: Capitol Convention Center, 6005 Tyee Drive SW, Tumwater Your Work Pays Off:In the December 8, 2024 Call to Action, you asked President Biden to “Grant clemency — Commute all death sentences” On 12/23/24 the ACLU announced President Biden has just commuted the sentences of 37 people on federal death row. ----- This past year, many of you poured yourselves into defeating I-2117, the MAGA-drafted ballot initiative that would have repealed the Climate Commitment Act. Take a look at the latest from Gov. Inslee on what your activism accomplished for boosting school bus and transit ridership: With help from the state’s Climate Commitment Act, the wheels on 124 new electric school buses will be going round and round all over the state. And an influx from the same legislation is helping the Tri-Cities’ Ben Franklin Transit respond to a huge 14.7% leap in ridership. Kids now ride transit free all over Washington; youth have enjoyed 14.8 million free rides thanks to the Climate Commitment Act and Move Ahead Washington transportation package. Good NewsVaccines Saved Millions of Lives in 2024
From our friends at FIX THE NEWS In 2024, Gavi (The Vaccine Alliance) outlined new plans to protect half a billion children in the next five years, began funding preventive Ebola vaccinations, and started accepting applications for rabies vaccines. The World Health Organization (WHO) approved a new dengue vaccine, Nigeria became the first country in the world to roll out a 'revolutionary' new meningitis vaccine, and world leaders pledged $1.1 billion to boost African vaccine production. We also got some big picture numbers: childhood vaccines in the United States have saved $540 billion in healthcare costs in the last three decades, and prevented 1.1 million deaths (paging RFK Jr.), and at the global level, since the 1970s, immunization efforts have saved approximately 154 million lives. |
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