Sen. Durbin rallies fight to save Lake Michigan from BP pollution

Ald. Edward M. Burke followed up on my column of two weeks ago calling for a boycott of BP -- "Bile-filled Pollution" ...

And here is an email from Sen. Dick Durbin on the BP controversy, too.

I am boycotting BP. Are you?

Ray Hanania
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Dear Friend,

Watch Senator Durbin challenge BP's plan to increase dumping into Lake Michigan, and e-mail BP's CEO now!

I urgently need your help to protect a vital resource and national treasure: Lake Michigan.
British Petroleum, an oil company that prides itself on its commitment to environmental protection, plans on dramatically increasing the pollution it releases into Lake Michigan. BP’s plan calls for a 54 percent increase in ammonia and a 35 percent increase in solid waste containing dangerous heavy metals to be dumped into Lake Michigan.

Lake Michigan and its shoreline are among the crown jewels of Chicago -- central to our city's bid for the 2016 Summer Olympic Games. The Great Lakes account for 95 percent of the surface freshwater in the U.S. and provide drinking water for more than 30 million Americans, including the entire Chicago-metropolitan region.

We cannot allow the Great Lakes to be treated as a dumping zone for industrial waste.
Email CEO Tony Hayward today and urge him to stop BP’s plans to pollute Lake Michigan.

For years, thousands of concerned citizens and elected officials have worked to reduce pollution and to guarantee the health of the Lakes for generations to come. BP’s plan to increase its dumping of ammonia and sludge by thousands of tons each year threatens these efforts to preserve and protect what even President Bush has called "a national treasure."

Last weekend I spent a day on the beachfront collecting signatures on a petition to block this terrible idea. Today, because of that petition drive, I had the opportunity to sit down with BP’s CEO Bob Malone. I am grateful that Mr. Malone agreed to meet on such short notice and I am happy to say that BP is taking another look at their plans. Unfortunately, BP would not commit to stopping their plans to increase pollution. If we’re going to succeed, British Petroleum needs to hear from all of you -- and hear from you today. Email CEO Bob Malone today to urge him to reverse BP’s plan to dump more industrial waste into Lake Michigan.

It is simply unacceptable that a company that has spent millions of dollars to portray itself as environmentally sensitive would then turn around and propose to dump ammonia and solid waste into our drinking water.

Email British Petroleum today, and let them know that the millions they have spent to burnish their image are about to go up in smoke.

They can’t have it both ways: if they are serious about protecting the environment, then they will join us by protecting Lake Michigan today.

Sincerely,
Dick DurbinU.S. Senator

P.S. Keeping Lake Michigan clean is incredibly important to me, to all Illinoisans, and to all Americans – and by sending an email to BP’s CEO, right now, you can make a huge difference. Thanks so much for your attention to this critical issue.