Forwarded
for your interest -- put out by a Michigan activists
Press
Release March 2, 2009 Washington
DC Capital Climate Action
Ahjani
Yepa-Sprague, 505-903-1192
Little River Band
of Ottawa
Indians / Jemez
We are here today, as the future leaders of the First Nations to
ask that the US Congress stop burning coal to provide energy to the
Capital. Coal Plants are responsible for CO2 emissions, a major green
house gas and the cause of “Global Warming”.
Tribal
Peoples in Michigan, my Nation, the Little
River Band of Ottawa Indians are under threat from 8 proposed coal fired power
plants, more than any in the United
States.
Global
Warming threatens to change our natural world beyond the memories of our
peoples. “This Capital Coal Plant needs to stop burning our way
into the future”
Emissions
from Coal Fired Power Plants, Particulate Matter (PM 2.5 and 10.0) are
especialy hard on our Elders and our children. It is our responsibility as Young
Leaders to protect them.
CO2
emissions from these coal plants are threatening our ways of life”
Changing water levels causes interruptions in the natural cycle and invasive
species threatens our tribal lifeways.
The Air,
Water and Mother Earth are sacred to our people, whatever we do to her, we do
to ourselves.”
Mercury from Coal Fired Power Plants,
like this one, are of special concern to children and women of childbearing age
like myself and many women who are here today at the Capital Coal Plant. Mercury
is a neuro toxin that harms the development of our children. The risk for women is the impact that mercury has on our
babies in the womb. Additionally, children who eat mercury-contaminated fish are at risk for
decreased brain function.
Tribal lifeways have had to be altered because
of the existing Mercury in the lakes and streams in Michigan. Further, no formal
government to government consultation was conducted between the Federal
Government, the State of Michigan
and the Tribes.
Every inland
lake in Michigan
is contaminated with Mercury. Our children can no longer eat the fish
This is the first generation in the history of our peoples that our children
cannot eat fish given to us by the Creator to live and provide sustenance.
The US
Congress and the President need to understand that Tribal communities in Michigan and around the World are threatened
by the pollution and harms caused by Coal Plants.
The US Congress must stop burning Coal NOW
Stop Coal NOW….
In 2007 the Supreme Court ruled CO2 is a pollutant under the
Clean Air Act. Further, “ In a 5-to-4 decision, the court found that the Clean
Air Act expressly authorizes the EPA to regulate carbon dioxide emissions,
contrary to the agency's contention, and that if the agency still insists that
it does not want to regulate those emissions, it must give better reasons than
the "laundry list" of invalid considerations it has offered so
Without the before mentioned consultation with the state and tribes the EPA’s
Indian Policy, which has a federal trust responsibility to the tribes, is
called into question. Hiding under the auspices of newly appointed state
regulations which were harbored and pushed through via non-disclosure and lack
of proper consultation with the tribes, is a woefully inadequate recognition of
all Tribes sovereignty.
By Ahjani
Yepa-Sprague: 505-903-1192, 911 North Ave, NE apt. C, Grand
Rapids, MI 49503
Grand Rapids
Community College
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Anne M. Woiwode, State Director
Sierra Club Michigan
Chapter - 109 E. Grand River
Avenue, Lansing, MI 48906
- 517-484-2372 anne.woiwode@sierraclub.org
http://michigan.sierraclub.org/index.shtml
Support the Sierra Club Michigan Chapter - contact Wendi
Tilden at wendi.tilden@sierraclub.org
The bold steps that are needed to solve the climate
crisis are exactly the same steps that ought to be taken in order to solve the
economic crisis and the energy security crisis - Al Gore