Tell Congress It's Time to Protect Our Ocean and Coasts from Climate Change, Pollution and Plastic

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Goal: 1500

Rising seas and severe weather events threaten coastal ecosystems, infrastructure and communities across the nation. Our wastewater systems are overloaded, causing spills of raw and undertreated sewage into communities and waterways. Meanwhile, plastic waste pollutes our beaches while carbon emissions from plastic production further fuels climate change.

Fortunately, we have the tools to manage our coasts more resiliently, ensure clean water on our beaches, protect marine wildlife and shift our practices away from fossil-fuel intensive, single-use plastic products. Congress has the ability to take the critical steps needed to make sure our ocean, waves and beaches are protected for all people.

Please make your voice heard now and help us turn the tide on plastic pollution, climate impacts on our coasts, and contaminated beaches across the nation!

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Dear [recipient position will go here] [recipient name will go here],

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Please support legislation this session to make our coastlines more resilient by protecting carbon storing ecosystems, monitoring coastal water quality, upgrading wastewater infrastructure, and shifting away from fossil-fuel intensive and polluting single use plastic products.

Across the nation, heavy rainfall and rising water tables have overloaded wastewater systems, causing spills of raw and under-treated sewage into communities and waterways, many of which eventually flow to the ocean. Coastal cities are frantically scrambling to slow the impacts of rising seas and increasingly intense storms, often relying on hard armoring that actually exacerbates the erosion of sand off of our beaches. Blue carbon ecosystems, like mangroves and salt marsh, filter stormwater runoff, capture carbon, alleviate flooding and provide essential habitat for wildlife, but continue to be degraded. Rising seas put further pressure on these critical habitats.

We have the tools to make our coastlines more resilient and protect wildlife, habitat, natural resources, nearby communities and the beaches that we love. We ask you to help protect our coasts and ocean through the following:

- Protect clean water and public health. Support fiscal year 2024 EPA funding appropriations of $15 million for the EPA BEACH Act Grants Program to fund water quality monitoring programs, and the full authorized level of $3 billion for the EPA Clean Water State Revolving Fund to repair and upgrade wastewater and stormwater infrastructure.

- Prevent avoidable plastic pollution. Support legislation that phases out single-use plastics and establishes protections for frontline communities exposed to harmful pollutants from nearby plastic production facilities.

- Advance nature-based and ocean climate solutions. Support legislation that advances proactive coastal adaptation, prohibits new offshore drilling, enhances coastal resilience and funds essential NOAA programs to protect both our natural and built environments.

As my federal representative, I’m counting on you to help turn the tide on these impacts, and increase the resilience and longevity of our coastlines, communities, and way of life. Thank you for your leadership.

Sincerely,
[your name will go here]
[your email address will go here] [your location will go here]

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