This has to do with duck hunting, bird watching, fishing, alligator wrestling and many other outdoor sports and is the outdoor sportsman's equivalent of destroying every athletic venue in the state of Mississippi.
Petition to Stop the Yazoo Pumps
Dear [Decision Maker],*
We, the undersigned hunters, anglers and wildlife enthusiasts, urge the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to veto plans to construct the Yazoo Backwater Pumping Plant in Mississippi. Four years ago, the EPA concluded that this single U.S. Army Corps of Engineers project would drain and damage 200,000 acres of ecologically significant wetlands in the heart of the Mississippi River Flyway - a critical migration route for 20 percent of the nation's duck populations. This is more than seven times as many wetlands destroyed in an entire year through private development under Clean Water Act section 404 permits.
Both EPA and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service oppose the Yazoo Pump. Not only would the project threaten some of the best hunting and fishing habitat in Mississippi, it would destroy any chance that this Administration has of meeting its "no net loss of wetlands" goal. In addition, it would guarantee that the Administration would not be able to meet the goal announced by President Bush on Earth Day 2004 of moving beyond no net loss of wetlands to an overall increase of America's wetlands. In fact, the Bush Administration has not supported funding for the Yazoo Pumps project but powerful members of Congress have inserted it in the Corps' budget.
The EPA and many others have suggested a far better alternative, one that would benefit all Delta residents, sportsmen and the environment. It would help to diversify the economy, provide public health benefits and provide recreational opportunities through wetland conservation and restoration.
We urge the EPA to stand up for sportsmen and take the next step to end this threat by vetoing the Yazoo Pumps under the Clean Water Act.
Sincerely,
Aubrey Shepherd
P.O. Box 3159
Fayetteville, AR 72702-3159 US
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