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Charlottesville, VA- Environment Virginia released an analysis today documenting that Representative Thelma Drake has consistently taken the side of polluters in opposing stronger protections for our waterways. Specifically, Drake has voted to deny environmental protection for Virginia’s streams and wetlands, to allow polluters to conceal information about 19.5 million pounds of toxic chemicals dumped each year into Virginia’s waterways, and to give Big Oil a free pass for contaminating drinking water supplies serving 12,000 Virginia residents.

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates that 63 percent of Virginia’s assessed rivers and streams and 97 percent of Virginia’s assessed lakes are already too polluted for fishing, swimming or other uses. Polluters dumped more than 244 million pounds of toxic chemicals into American waterways in 2006. And more than 850 billion gallons of raw or inadequately treated sewage are discharged into waterways each year.

“Virginia’s representatives in Congress must be willing to stand up to the polluters and work for real solutions to protect the quality of our waterways,” said Environment Virginia Clean Water Advocate Christy Leavitt. “Unfortunately, during her time in the U.S. House, Rep. Thelma Drake has voted consistently to weaken protections for America’s rivers, lakes and streams—putting our environment and the health of the public at risk.”

The last eight years under President Bush represent a large step backward that contrasts with sharply with decades of progress in protecting water supplies, according to the group. Among his anti-environment actions of special interest to Virginians, President Bush has:

• Moved to eliminate Clean Water Act protections for at least 57 percent of Virginia’s streams—waterways that are critical for a variety of wildlife and that feed the drinking water supplies of 3.3 million people.
• Curtailed enforcement of the Clean Water Act. For example, major Virginia facilities exceeded their permitted amounts of water pollution more than 220 times in 2005.
• Put the interests of Big Oil ahead of the public by exempting the construction of oil and gas drilling sites from the Clean Water Act.

“Time and again, Representative Drake has stood with George Bush and the polluters to weaken protections for America’s waterways. To protect the health of Virginia’s waterways and our environment, Virginians in the 2th congressional district should elect Glenn Nye to the U.S. Congress,” concluded Leavitt.”

View the full report.

For more information, contact:
Ivan Frishberg or Jen Mueller at (202) 683-1250.