The Utah legislative session will last until March 1st. For the next 45 days, we will be working to make sure that the expansion of radioactive waste disposal at Envirocare is kept off the table, that legislation is created to keep foreign nuclear waste from being dumped in Utah, and that environmental groups preserve their ability to bring lawsuits against harmful practices by corporations or the government.

You, our members and volunteers, are our most credible voice. If you’d like to learn more about the issues we will be working on this session and how you can get involved for the next 45 days, join us this Thursday, January 19th, at 6:00pm in our office for a Legislative Briefing.

We’re looking for people who can join us at the capitol to create a citizen presence, attend hearings throughout the session, come to rallies and press conferences, talk to their neighbors and generate calls to their legislators, or even host in-home meetings with their legislators. Whether you can do a lot or a little, your participation makes a big difference. Together, we can achieve much more than what our three-person staff can achieve on our own.

If you can’t attend the meeting, but would like to be involved throughout the session, please let me know.

The issues in a nutshell:
1) Even though Gov. Huntsman has definitively said no to Envirocare’s expansion, the company is still proceeding with its plan to double the size of its radioactive waste dump. Currently there is a resolution pending, sponsored by Rep. Jim Gowans (D-Tooele), that would approve Envirocare’s expansion. We will be working to make sure that this resolution does not pass.
2) Remember the 500 tons of uranium “ore” that was shipped from Japan and dumped at IUC in Blanding, UT? We will be working this session to create legislation that would prevent foreign nuclear waste from being dumped in Utah.
3) We will also be working to stop a bill that would make it prohibitively expensive for environmental groups to file lawsuits in the state of Utah. We need to preserve access to the judicial branch of government so that proper checks and balances remain in place.

For more information, please contact:

John Urgo
Outreach Director
HEAL Utah
68 S Main St, Suite 400
SLC, UT 84101
(801) 355-5055
john[at]healutah.org