Corporate Polluters Put Local Democracy at Risk

When several massive factory farms set up shop in rural Pennsylvania, they
brought with them the usual problems for local people: foul odors,
contamination of groundwater, and dirty, noisy truck traffic.  Nine
Pennsylvania townships, fearing they'd be the next to be targeted, passed
local laws to protect their communities from these factory farms.  Sounds
reasonable, right?

Not to the agribusiness industry.  They're pushing new legislation in
Harrisburg which would prevent communities from banning these operations.
So towns would be stuck with polluting, smelly factory farms, whether they
want them or not.  Local protections against factory farms are described by
agribusiness as "frivolous".  But this bill would threaten the democratic
right of communities everywhere to determine their own future, rather than
having it forced upon them by corporations.  And there's nothing frivolous
about that.

For more information on this assault on local democracy, go to
http://www.tompaine.com/feature.cfm/ID/5641

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4. Take Action to Keep International Trade Clean, Green, and Fair

President Bush is pushing "fast track" legislation, which would let the
White House negotiate sweeping global trade deals without input from
Congress.  So the administration would be able to expand provisions in
NAFTA that allow private corporations to sue foreign governments whenever
environmental protections affect corporate profits.  If fast track passes
in its current form, many of our most crucial environmental and public
health safeguards could be jeopardized.

There is a solution - Senator John Kerry (D-MA) is sponsoring an amendment
that would fix these dangerous provisions and make sure our environmental
laws stay put.  Congress will vote soon, so contact your senators and urge
them to support the Kerry amendment.

Call your senators at 877-611-0063 (courtesy of the AFL-CIO).  Deliver the
message on the Kerry amendment.  Then go to the site below for more
information on the fight for fair trade.

http://www.sierraclub.org/trade



Erin Jordahl
Director, Iowa Chapter Sierra Club
3839 Merle Hay Road, Suite 280
Des Moines, IA 50310
515-277-8868
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