I’ve heard the axiom around Washington that when disaster strikes, Congress responds. But in the case of the BP Gulf oil spill, the worst environmental disaster of our time, this axiom has failed – until now. Still, advocates and activists have not given up, and momentum is building behind legislation crucial for the Gulf and our national energy and environmental future. This week is the time to speak out and urge Congress to invest in restoring the Gulf, empower citizens and community leaders to work effectively with oil and gas companies to protect their communities, and enhance health and safety across the offshore drilling industry.

Today you can join advocates from across the Gulf and people of diverse faiths from across the country by making a call for the future of the Gulf. This nationwide call-in day urges the Senate to pass the RESTORE Act, a bill supported by nine Gulf Coast Senators and designed to ensure that the Clean Water Act penalties collected from BP as a result of the spill are invested in Gulf restoration. This legislation would provide a desperately needed infusion of funds for restoring the ecosystems and economy hit hardest by the spill, many of which feed and fuel our nation. Nearly 500 miles of Gulf coastline in four states remains oiled, and the need for restoration is immediate.

Americans understand the importance of the Gulf to our nation; recent polls show that 83 percent of voters nationwide – across geographic and political backgrounds – support investing in damaged Gulf Coast communities and environments, but Congress must act quickly to jump-start this process. Learn why our partners in the evangelical Christian community support RESTORE and see this as an issue of faith and justice, and make the call for the Gulf today.

But RESTORE isn’t everything. The bill does not include a Regional Citizen’s Advisory Council (RCAC), a funded body of citizen stakeholders and community leaders designed to advise the fossil fuel industry, using local knowledge to make drilling safer and prevent future disasters. Two effective Councils were created in Alaska after Exxon-Valdez, and the Gulf needs these bodies to ensure that local stakeholders have a seat at the table as decisions about the fossil fuel future (and their future) are made. As a matter of justice and empowerment for the people of the Gulf, advocates are urging that this critical oversight mechanism be included in Gulf restoration legislation.

While our eyes must remain on the real prize – a clean energy future – today let’s turn to the Gulf, remember the oil spill disaster and 11 lives lost on the Deepwater Horizon, and urge the Senate to get to work restoring the Gulf, preventing future disasters, and empowering citizens and community leaders to shape their own futures.

The RESTORE Act is needed now to ensure that Clean Water Act penalties resulting from the spill are invested in restoring Gulf ecosystems and communities. A recent op-ed from evangelical Christian leaders explains why this is an issue of justice for the Gulf. As the Rev. Mitch Hescox, president of the Evangelical Environmental Network (an After the Spill campaign partner), and Dr. Randy Brinson, president of the Alabama Christian Coalition, explain, “We need to support Gulf Coast residents and clean up the economic and environmental disaster. There can be no room for theoretical debates as whole communities are at stake.”

They go on to say, “We must ensure — now and in the future — that legal fines resulting from any ecological disaster provide for those impacted, and are not simply held in trust or deposited into the treasury.” We could not agree more – read the  op-ed today and get ready to take action as part of next week’s call-in blitz for the Gulf!

Your synagogue, church or mosque could be a great site for a screening and you can even feature a speaker or letter-writing campaign following the film. Events should be held from August 8 – September 5, while Congress is home for the summer recess and Members have an eye on what is going on in the local community. Show your Senators and Representatives that Gulf restoration is a priority for people of faith across the country!

When you sign up to host a screening, you’ll receive a host packet with a DVD, fact sheets and post cards and a petition to Congress. You’ll also get raffle tickets and prizes! This summer is a critical window for passing legislation to protect and restore the Gulf, and people across the country must stand up and raise their voices to move these efforts forward. Visit Gulf Restoration Network’s site to  sign up as a screening host, and receive the support you need to make your event a success.

The stand against coastal and offshore drilling continued on Saturday, June 25^th along beaches and at community events worldwide.  Thousands of cities around the world participated in last Saturday’s “Hands Across the Sand” program, including many along the Gulf coast. Participants included local residents, tourists, elected officials and business owners, many hurt by the devastation of the Gulf Oil Disaster in 2010. Volunteers worked to sign people in, talk about drilling and clean energy issues, and gather petition signatures.

In Florida, along Tampa Bay area beaches, over 1300 supporters lined up to join hands to say NO to DRILLING, and call for CLEAN ENERGY NOW. The Treasure Island group, led by Surfrider Foundation, partnered with “Surfers for Autism” to create a line over 500 strong.  On St. Pete Beach, the Tradewinds event garnered 400 supporters.  Debra Davies from the Tradewinds Island Resort organized the beach, joined by a coalition of volunteers including Gulf Restoration Network, local Sierra Club chapters, Defenders of Wildlife and Save Our Seas, Beaches and Shores. Spearheading the press conference and local media outreach prior to and after the event was an organizing coalition led by Cathy Harrelson of Gulf Restoration Network. The press conference held before the Hands event at the Tradewinds included former Governor Charlie Crist, State Representative Rick Kriseman, and representatives from U.S. Representatives C.W. Bill Young and Kathy Castor, along with city and county elected officials and environmental groups.  Check out this article to see footage from the events in Florida. Pictured above is Governor Crist holding hands with Cathy Harrelson and his wife, Carole.

At the Biloxi, Mississippi event, participants were asked to join hands at noon to take a symbolic stand to make sure Congress takes action to restore the coast in the wake of the disaster and to make sure we don’t see another like it here in the Gulf. Check out this article to see an interview with GRN’s Mississippi Organizer who helped coordinate the event. In it, Raleigh calls for the creation of a Regional Citizen’s Advisory Council stating, “the idea of the Regional Citizens Advisory Council is it gives affected communities a voice in future oil and gas industry decisions and makes sure they can keep an eye on oil spill response plans so that they are not there protecting the nonexistent gulf walrus,” he said.

In New Orleans, people gathered in solidarity along the Mississippi River behind the Audubon Zoo. The occasion featured music from GRN supporters Sassafrass and speakers from GRN, Sierra Club, Louisiana Bucket Brigade, Joule Energy Co., and BikeEasy. Check out this video from local ABC affiliate WGNO featuring an interview with GRN’s Coastal Resiliency Organizer, Jonathan Henderson, for a look at the New Orleans event.

To stoke the spirit and passion of Hands Across the Sand, Gulf Restoration Network will continue to work with participants including an upcoming Activist Training on Saturday, July 23^rd in the Tampa area. For more information please contact GRN’s Florida Director, Darden Rice at darden@healthygulf.orgThis e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . You can also stay involved by taking action NOW at BP drilling disaster.org.

Last week, I wrote a blog about the importance of engaging communities in the decision making process as we move forward with restoration plans and projects. Recognizing this, the Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force is creating a Gulf of Mexico Citizens Advisory Committee (GMCAC). This GMCAC will provide independent citizen advice to the EPA Administrator on a broad range of environmental issues affecting the five Gulf of Mexico Coastal States. It is important to point out the difference between this entity and the Gulf of Mexico Regional Citizens Advisory Council (GMRCAC) for which we  have been advocating. Explaining each of these advisory bodies below, I hope to shed some light on how they differ and why each in its own right is vital to protecting and restoring the Gulf of Mexico and our coastal communities.

The Gulf of Mexico Citizen Advisory Committee is created by The Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) and will be a 25-member Committee. Its authority is limited to offering advice to officers and agencies in the executive branch of the Federal Government, in this case, specifically advising the EPA as they lead the Gulf of Mexico Ecosystem Restoration Task Force and oversee the implementation plan that the task force is currently developing. Funding for such a committee may come directly from Congress or provided with monies indirectly through general agency appropriations.Additionally, FACA committees operate “in the sunshine” which means that their meetings, deliberations and reports are open and available to the public.

The Regional Citizen Advisory Council is an independent, non-profit organization, whose purpose is to promote environmentally safe operations of the oil and gas industry, help prevent future spills, and monitor pollution . Under The Oil Pollution Act of 1990 (OPA90), two regional citizen advisory councils were created – one for the Prince William Sound area and one for Cook Inlet. Congress envisioned the councils as a mechanism to foster long-term partnerships between industry, government, and the coastal communities of Alaska.The numbers of citizens represented on these councils differs:

• The Prince William Sound RCAC have more than a dozen voting board members that represent major public stakeholders in the region, including cities, villages, and groups representing Alaska Natives, conservation, tourism, commercial fishing, and aquaculture. Representatives of state and federal agencies sit as non-voting members. All member organizations and agencies appoint their own representative to the Council
• The COOK INLET RCAC Board of Directors is comprised of 13 members, each representing a specific interest or community. The cities of Anchorage, Kenai, Homer, Seldovia, and Kodiak each have a seat on the Council, as does the Kodiak Island Borough and the Kenai Peninsula Borough. Interest groups represented on the COOK INLET RCAC Board of Directors include Alaska native organizations, state chamber of commerce (tourism), environmental groups, recreational groups, commercial fishing groups, and aquaculture associations. In addition, COOK INLET Representatives of state and federal agencies sit as non-voting members.

RCACs have no legal authority or vote in the decision-making process. Rather, the council comments on and participates in monitoring and assessment of environmental, social, and economic consequences of oil-transportation activities, including comments on the design of measures to mitigate the impacts of oil spills and other environmental effects of oil and gas operations.OPA 90 requires operators in the region to provide annual funding for these RCACs.

Some major RCAC in Alaska accomplishments have included:

• Addressing public questions and concerns about spill risks and spill prevention measures.
• Supporting the creation of response strategies to protect vulnerable coastal areas from spills.
• Advising the U.S. Congress on double-hull requirements for oil tankers.
• Funding research that resulted in vapor controls on tankers to limit the release of dangerous fumes.
• Funding buoys that collect data for modeling the path of spilled oil.
• Helping to establish a tanker escort system with tug boats to monitor conditions and assist tankers.

In short, the GMCAC created by the EPA will be able to advise the EPA on Gulf Ecosystem Restoration considerations.  The GMRCAC would advise the oil industry and their regulators on how to proceed safely, and with minimal future environmental harm to the region.

Michelle Erenberg is the Special Projects Coordinator and works with the Gulf Future Coalition. To find out more about the Gulf Future Action Plan click here.

Last February, thousands of Floridians gathered on beaches across the state, united to oppose oil drilling off their coast. After the BP spill began, a global Hands event was organized to raise awareness of the dangers of offshore drilling, with over 1,000 events in 40 countries. This weekend, participants will join together peacefully in coastal areas – those most vulnerable to the damages of offshore drilling – to demand clean energy solutions. Hands Across the Sand aims to protect vulnerable coasts and ecosystems, prevent future oil spill disasters and say yes to a clean energy future.

People all over the world will hold Hands Across the Sand events, with U.S. events happening from coast to coast in places like Santa Monica and Del Mar, CA, and Myrtle Beach, SC. Events will take place across the Gulf Coast – in Grand Isle, LA, Biloxi, MS and Dauphin Island, AL – as citizens call for government action to protect and restore the Gulf.

As one event organizer explained, “Once again, we are drawing a line in the sand against drilling along America’s beaches across the nation and around the world.  Our coastlines, marine life and tourism industry are too big of a risk to take.”

Learn more about Hands Across the Sand and see photos and video from 2010.

Featured speakers:

• Chef Susan Spicer, Bayona Restaurant, New Orleans
• Telley Madina, Coastal Communities Program Officer, Oxfam
• Reverend Cory Sparks, Chair,  Commission on Stewardship of the Environment, Louisiana Interchurch Conference

Email today to receive the dial-in number, and spread the word! After the Spill and Gulf Restoration Network look forward to learning with you.

This practice of dumping untreated waste water from offshore drilling operations – called produced waters – was previously permitted without prior study of its consequences. The court ruled that waste water permits issued in 2009 did not require sufficient testing or monitoring of the potential dangers of these waste waters. Though one lawyer involved in the case argues that such a review “should have been done 30, 40 years ago,” it’s a case of better late than never for the human and ecological health of communities located near these waste sites.

The case has been pending since LEAN filed suit against the state environmental department in 2009, with evidence of potential health consequences accumulating in water supplies and food chains. This practice of dumping waste into local water supplies has gone on for too long without adequate study and regulation, but hopefully this court ruling is a major step in regulating this potentially dangerous practice.

In disturbing new videos, former commercial bait fisherman Joey Yerkes and others  discuss their experiences with the oil spill and sicknesses they believe they are experiencing as a result. Hear stories from Joey and others involved in Gulf fishing and the BP Vessels of Opportunity (VOO) clean-up program here (part 1) and here (part 2).

Public health is a priority in the Gulf Future Action Plan, which calls for accessible health care provided at the local level by experts who understand chemical exposure issues; education for health care providers on oil-spill related health impacts; and accurate tracking of impacts by government and communities. After watching these videos it’s hard not to join their call for action.