Today in Birmingham the Annual Auntie Litter and Earth Day Celebration was held. Leading AL-07 Candidate Shelia Smoot was one of the participants of the largest national earth day parade for children held at Kelly Ingram Park - which is a landmark of the Civil rights movement
Smoot had this to say
I have always supported recycling and keeping our environment clean.
The best way to teach this is through the eyes of children. I was taught as a child, as these children are being taught today, to take care of the earth and preserve it for generations to come. Today we taught another generation of 2000 kids to follow in our footsteps."
Shelia Smoot is not a candidate that comes out on environmental issues just for Earth Day. Last year she called on the EPA and TVA to address concerns related to the transportation and dumping tons (millions) of coal ash in a Perry County Landfill. Perry County is in the heart of AL-07 and one of the poorest counties in the country.
These two agencies are charged with the protection of the environment and health issues with respect to the coal ash. Wednesday Night in Uniontown that public hearing was held. However, the hearing failed to produce any answers the people of Alabama deserved to hear. Furthermore, the Federal Government announced that the transportation and storage of the toxic coal ash had already begun.
I am outraged that the Federal Government would begin this process without any input or plan for the current and future safety of the citizens of Alabama !
In my letter demanding for the hearing I asked that four issues be addressed:
- What are the real risks involved in accepting the ash and the precautions being taken to combat those risks?
- What are the steps being taken to assure safe transportation and disposal of the ash?
- What are the plans for any public outreach programs that maintain lines of communication with the public and provides off set funds to benefit the entire community?
- What are the plans for future testing of the soil and water surrounding the landfill?
It is clear after the meeting last evening that neither the E.P.A. nor T.V.A. has any real answers for the citizen's of Perry County or anyone along the lines of transportation. In addition, there is clearly not a plan for any long term partnership to protect those that live in proximity to the dump site. It is concerning that a substance considered toxic in Tennessee can be harmless to transport through Alabama and stored in Perry County .
As a lifelong advocate for the "consumer," I feel and have always felt that it is the duty of our leaders to balance the benefits of jobs and business with the safety of its citizens. I understand the need for balance and the potential economic impact for Perry County . In this economy and particularly my long suffering district, I will never stand in the way of job growth. However, it our right to know the real dangers associated with the coal ash.
Shelia Smoot is a great candidate and someone who will stand up for the issues and be on the right side of the constituents in AL-07. For more Read Ministry of Truth's Diary about Shelia from last week.
Shelia's currently leading the polls and has the highest name recognition of any candidate in the race to replace Artur Davis. However, she's trailing more well funded candidates. We hope you will Contribute to Shelia Smoot on Act Blue