WashPIRG with a victory announcement

[Guest guest]

Dear WashPIRG supporter,I'm happy to let you know that House Bill 1002, which will phase out mercury pollution in Washington, passed the Washington Senate last week on a vote of 47-1! The bill now goes back to the House, which passed an earlier version of the bill, so that the House can vote to agree with the Senate's version of the bill. Then, the bill will be sent to the Governor to be signed.In recent months, thousands of WashPIRG supporters have let their elected officials know that they want something to be done about mercury pollution and, as you can see, it really made a difference.Now is the perfect time to call and thank your state senator for voting for House Bill 1002. You can call your state senator on the toll free legislative hotline, 1-800-562-6000. Here's a sample message you can leave:"Hi, my name is ______ and I live in _______. Thank you for voting for House Bill 1002 to phase out mercury pollution."Please take a moment to let us know you called, so we can count the calls.To report your call, or paste it into your web browser:http://pirg.org/alerts/route.asp?id=24 & id4=ESPassing the bill overwhelmingly in the House and Senate is a great achievement. I'll keep you posted on our progress and what you can do to help. Thanks again.BACKGROUNDMercury is a potent neurotoxin that builds up in the tissues of animals and people. It belongs to a class of dangerous chemicals that have left a toxic legacy across our state and around the globe. This class of chemicals, often referred to as PBTs or persistent toxic chemicals, breaks down slowly or not at all in the environment and accumulates in the food chain, building up in our bodies. Exposure to even small amounts of mercury can have severe health effects, especially for pregnant women and children.We can be exposed to mercury by breathing mercury-contaminated air or coming in contact with mercury when mercury products, like thermometers or thermostats, break in our homes. One of the most common ways we are exposed to mercury is by eating mercury-contaminated fish. Because mercury builds up in animal tissues, fish such as bass and walleye can have between 1 and 10 million times more mercury in their systems than exists in surrounding waters.Mercury pollution can be traced to a variety of sources in Washington. These sources include coal-burning power plants, industrial processes, landfills and incinerators. The Department of Ecology estimates that one of the largest sources of mercury pollution in Washington is the disposal of mercury products. Mercury is released when these items are incinerated in solid-waste incinerators, thrown away in landfills or break during everyday use.During the 2002 legislative session, a broad coalition including WashPIRG, Washington Toxics Coalition and Washington Physicians for Social Responsibility supported passage of a bill to address mercury pollution. But because of the efforts of polluters like the American Chemistry Council, the Association of Washington Businesses and the National Electrical Manufactures Association, Washington legislators failed to pass the bill.This session, the public interest prevailed and the bill overwhelmingly passed both the House and Senate! The Governor is expected to sign the bill soon.House Bill 1002 will:* Ban the sale of mercury thermometers and blood pressure devices by January 2006, with some exceptions.* Ban the sale of mercury-containing toy novelty items by January 2006.* Ban the sale of mercury auto switches by January 2006.* Ban the installation or reinstallation of mercury thermostats by January 2006 unless the manufacturer of the thermostat participates in a thermostat recycling program.* Prohibit schools from purchasing mercury compounds and requires them to remove mercury by January 2006.* Require state government to purchase low and non-mercury-added products where feasible.Thanks again for your support.Sincerely, Robert PregulmanWashPIRG Executive DirectorRobertPregulmanhttp://www.WashPIRG.orgP.S. Thanks again for your support. Please feel free to share this e-mail with your family and friends.----------If you want to change your e-mail address or are getting e-mail at multiple e-mail addresses then follow this link - http://pirg.org/alerts/route.asp?id2=9726 & id6=change - to a web page where you can change your e-mail address.If you want us to stop sending you e-mail then follow this link - http://pirg.org/alerts/route.asp?id2=9726 & id6=remove - to a web page where you can remove yourself.