Five reasons to NOT support Mark Obenshain

Mark Obenshain has not been a very good senator and he would be an even worse attorney general. Here are the top 5 reasons you should NOT vote for Mark Obenshain on November 5:

1. Mark Obenshain supported legislation that would force a woman who had suffered an emotionally devastating miscarriage to report it to police. He eventually withdrew the bill citing "flaws" but that doesn't excuse his basic premise that government should actively intrude in women's personal lives.
2. Mark Obenshain has pushed for voter ID laws that obviously target minorities and poor and would make voting more difficult for thousands of Virginians.
3. Mark Obenshain supported a personhood bill that, if enacted, potentially would ban some forms of birth control.
4. Mark Obenshain did not support the transportation bill that eventually passed with bipartisan support and the signature of a Republican governor. In short, Mr. Obenshain voted against jobs and improving the Commonwealth's economic climate.
5. Mark Obenshain has received big bucks from oil, coal, and natural gas companies. If you care about issues like clean water and clean air then Obenshain's friends who favor mountain top removal coal mining, fracking, and uranium mining in Virginia should scare the bejesus out of you.

Ken Cuccinelli and Mark Obenshain - twin sons of different mothers. The former is a far right extremist with a mean-spirit scowl. The latter is a far right extremist with a fake smile. Don't be fooled. If Obenshain is elected the Office of the Attorney General will become ground zero for rolling back women's rights, for diminishing our democracy, and for degrading our environment.

Grassroots Momentum Growing to Keep the Ban

keeptheban.org

In spite of the lack of transparency (and objectivity?) of Governor Bob McDonnell's Uranium Working Group, there seems to be some momentum building to Keep the Ban on uranium mining in the Commonwealth. This fall several influential lobbying groups - the Virginia Municipal League, the Virginia Association of Counties, and the Virginia Farm Bureau - all stated their opposition to uranium mining in Virginia.

The mayors of both Virginia Beach and Norfolk expressed their strong opposition to uranium mining because of threat to drinking water sources for over a million residents. As they noted in their editorial in the Richmond Times-Dispatch:

While we have confidence in Virginia’s regulatory agencies, we understand the difficulties associated with implementing new processes in an area less than hospitable for uranium mining. This is not an appropriate project for our regulatory partners to learn "on the job." There simply is too much at stake and too much to risk. No amount of regulation can prevent the unexpected.

 And just this week, Lt. Governor Bill Bolling broke GOP ranks by announcing his opposition to uranium mining in the state. Among the reasons he cited in his official statement are the potential for adverse and chilling economic and environmental impacts as well as the strong opposition of officials in Pittsylvania County and the region.

But, there is big money on the side of the proponents of and the battle will be joined during this session of the General Assembly. Many legislators say they are undecided but "our representatives" are being lavished by the industry with huge campaign contributions and perks provided by their lobbyists. The corrupting and anti-democracy influence of money is estimated by the Southern Environmental Law Center to have reached nearly $750,000 already!

Keep the Ban - what YOU can do!

• Look for updates at the Virginia Chapter Sierra Club and Keep the Ban.
• Contact your senator and delegate and tell him or her to keep the ban on uranium mining.
• Talk to friends.
• Write a letter to the editor of your local paper.
• On January 28 attend the VCN/Sierra Club Lobby Day at the General Assembly.

UPDATE 12/20/12 - Senator Mark Herring (Loudoun & Fairfax) announced his opposition to uranium mining in Virginia saying, "I will oppose legislation during the upcoming 2013 General Assembly session that would lift the ban. Additionally, I plan to introduce budget language that would prohibit any state funding from being used to promulgate regulations designed to circumvent the ban."

Just say NO to uranium mining in Virginia

keeptheban.org

There is a widely held view across the commonwealth that uranium mining in Virginia is a bad idea. When Paul Locke, the chair of the National Academy of Sciences report, "Uranium Mining in Virginia said, " Internationally accepted best practices, which include timely and meaningful public participation, are available to mitigate some of the risks involved. However, there are still many unknowns."

Unknowns? Mitigate some risks?

Virginia's climate and geology does indeed present significant and scary unknowns to uranium mining and milling that have not been confronted in other places. As the report noted, Virginia is subject to extreme natural events, including hurricanes, tornados, and heavy rainfall. And, as we've recently witnessed, the commonwealth is not immune to earthquakes.

The risks to public health and safety are great, yet powerful economic interests led by Virginia Uranium, Inc. are pulling out all the stops to influence legislators and agencies who will make the final decisions about keeping or rescinding the 1982 statewide moratorium on uranium mining. Those decisions will affect the future of every Virginian and possibly people beyond the state's borders. Unable to get ban-lifting legislation through the General Assembly, the industry enlisted Governor Bob McDonnell to create a Working Group that is tilted towards industry views, lacks transparency, and has encouraged little public participation.

To date, many concerns and questions remain unanswered. For instance:

• What happens to left over toxic wastes?
• What is the impact on drinking water supplies for millions of Virginians?
• What is the impact on air quality for the region?
• How will hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation be affected?
• What is the impact on key parts of the Virginia economy such as agriculture and tourism?
• What plans are in place for extreme natural events?
• What is the impact on property values near mines and mills and along transportation routes?
• What is the impact..... (fill in your own concern or check these out)?

The Virginia Department of Health (VDH) is conducting public meetings on issues of water quality and water recreation to assess the impact of uranium mining and milling in the commonwealth. The meetings scheduled (more info about these and other meetings) are:

• August 7 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at the Chatham Circuit Court Building in Chatham, VA;
• August 15 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at The Barn, Lord Fairfax Community College in Warrenton, VA;
• August 29 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at Meyera Oberndorff Library in Virginia Beach, VA.

If you can't make the meetings, you can submit comments directly to the Uranium Working Group online or by mail at 1100 Bank Street, 8th Floor, Richmond, VA 23219.

Another way to take action is to contact your legislators in the General Assembly. For those of us in the central Valley contacting Senator Emmett Hanger is vitally important. He has previously shown that he is willing to listen and he has been sensitive to environmental concerns on other issues. And, as a senior member of the Virginia Senate, he holds a position of power and influence. Not sure who your legislators are or want more ideas for your email to him/her - visit the Virginia Chapter Sierra Club.

Virginia faces many challenges in the commonwealth's diverse environment - cleaning up the Chesapeake Bay, reducing the impact of burning dirty coal on air and water quality, mountaintop removal coal mining, and the uncertain dangers of hydrofracking in the huge watersheds of the George Washington National Forest. Each of these threats is very real and deserves the public's and policymakers' attentions. But, the unknowns and horrific perils of uranium mining and milling in Virginia are job #1 of all who care about a healthy future for the Old Dominion.