Buffalo River Watershed Alliance |
URGENT Action Required:
Help Defeat Senate Bill 290 Which Prohibits Moratoriums Statewide
Legislators respond best to their own constituents but even if your representative is not on the committee your comments can still be effective
We encourage you to add your own personal comments to the email but if you do, Please Be Courteous. Name calling and obscenities are counter-productive.
Thanks to all who have patiently followed legislative maneuverings over the past months and who have responded to our repeated requests to contact committee members. You have made a difference!
Legislative efforts to remove the current moratorium on swine CAFO permits in the Buffalo River watershed continue to be scheduled, rescheduled and delayed. It began with Senate Bill 84 which was scheduled to be heard by the Senate Agriculture committee on February 6th. It would ban all moratoriums statewide. Due to widespread objections from BRWA and others, SB84 was deferred and SB290 was introduced in its place. On April 1 (no, not an April Fools joke) SB290 was approved by a voice vote of the Senate Agriculture Committee in spite of testimony by BRWA and others If it passes on the Senate floor on April 2nd or 3rd, it will then be moved to the House and referred to the House Ag committee where it will likely be heard on Monday, April 7th. We urge you to use the link above to email House Ag Committee members asking that they OPPOSE SB290. BRWA will continue to attend these meetings to testify against the bill and we encourage all who are able to attend as well. Use the link above to email your comments.
If SB290 passes in both chambers it will then go to the governor. If she vetos the bill, as we hope she would, it can nevertheless be overridden by a simple majority vote of the legislature.
Read SENATE BILL 290 here
When BRWA was organized in 2013 we had two simple(!) goals: 1) to close the C&H hog CAFO and; 2) to secure a permanent moratorium prohibiting any future hog CAFOs in the Buffalo River watershed. We accomplished the first in 2019 with closure of C&H and the second is now being threatened. Senate Bills 84 and 290 in thier original form statutorily prohibited moratoriums against the issuance of permits for swine CAFOs (and any other permits) statewide, including specifically in the Buffalo National River watershed. ,
, SB 290, in its amended form, is crafted so that moratoriums will be a demanding process which is unnecessary and wastes state agency and legislative resources.
It is an obvious end-run around pending rule makings which include protections for the Buffalo. Senate Bill 290 was filed on February 25 ands approved by the Senate Ag Committee on April 1st. Please help defeat this bill in the House by voicing your support for protecting the Buffalo via the link above.
If the link doesn't work for you:
That html link works with most email systems, but some don't support it. Allowing popups (aka popup windows) temporarily in your browser or phone settings will often allow the link to work. The text of the message to the legislators is below. You can copy and paste it into a new email. You can put the following list of legislator email addresses in your 'To' box.
[Put the following list of email addresses in your email 'To' box - you can put them in all at once:]
[Below is the message - add to or change it if you wish:]
Subject: Oppose Senate Bill 290
Email body:
Please protect the Buffalo National River and Support a permanent moratorium on large swine CAFOs in the BNR watershed.
SB290 is redundant and unnecessary because the law already requires that any new rules be approved by the legislature.
Protect the Natural State's beauty and recreation opportunities, our drinking water resources, business economic opportunities, and towns, school systems, and family farms in the BNR watershed.
Vote NO on SB290.
Sincerely,
BRWA Concerns
* This bill leaves vulnerable the Buffalo National River which is a state icon and economic engine worthy of protections from threats to its water quality.
* Passage of this bill invites a repeat of the $6.2 million state buyout of the C&H disaster and is financially irresponsible.
* This bill leaves vulnerable all watersheds in the state, including those of numerous municipal water systems, including the Maumelle watershed which is currently protected by a moratorium.
Please join us TODAY in urging members of the House Ag Committee to oppose SB 290.
Thank you!