Effort to Protect Newtown Creek Underway By PennEnvironment

PennEnvironment has launched a door-to-door public education and engagement effort to protect Newtown Creek, the environmental advocacy organization announced this week.

“Right now, loopholes in the Clean Water Act leave the drinking water for 8 million Pennsylvanians and 49,000 miles of Pennsylvania’s streams at risk to unchecked pollution. We have to make sure the Newtown Creek gets the protection it deserves,” said Lina Blount, PennEnvironment Campaign Director.

According to information from the organization, Supreme Court decisions in 2001 and 2006 have left the Clean Water Act in “legal limbo” -- more than half of Pennsylvania’s streams and many of its wetlands have been without critical federal protections.

On May 27, the EPA finalized its steps to restore these protections after more than 800,000 people across the country submitted public comments in support of the plan, PennEnvironment explained in a press release. But leaders in Congress are moving forward with a bill to block the EPA’s effort and leave these waterways without the protections they need.

“This rule is the biggest step forward for clean water in more than a decade,” Blount said. “That’s why it’s so important that everyone – from residents of Newtown to leaders like Senator Bob Casey – stands up for the Newtown Creek.”