***MEDIA ADVISORY***

For more Information, contact:  
David Graham-Caso, Sierra Club, 858-945-2203 or david.grahamcaso@sierraclub.org.

***EPA Public Hearing in Dallas***
Wednesday, September 8 – Press Conference at 11:00 AM

Sierra Club Executive Director to Join Concerned Residents of Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana at Rally in Dallas For Protection from Toxic Coal Ash

WHAT:   Concerned residents and local activists will be joined by Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune to rally outside the EPA Public Hearing in Dallas to tell stories about dangerous dumps and waste ponds filled with contaminated coal ash chemicals and to call for the EPA to pass strong federal regulations protecting people from coal ash.

WHO:          Michael Brune, Sierra Club Executive Director*   
                    Dr. Karen Lewis, Pediatrician 
                    Affected residents of Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana and Arkansas

WHEN:        Wednesday, September 8, Press Conference: 11:00 AM

WHERE:      Hyatt Regency- 300 Reunion Boulevard, Dallas – Reunion Room

*Mr. Brune will be available to the media throughout the afternoon.  Please contact David Graham-Caso at 858-945-2203.

Background:
On Wednesday, September 8th, Dallas will be the site of the latest in an ongoing set of hearings and events concerning the under-reported issue of toxic coal ash.  Following the release of a new report revealing more than three dozen new sites in 21 states where toxic coal ash has made the water unsafe, the EPA has begun a series of public hearings on new safeguards for the toxic waste. Already, hundreds of residents from 12 states have traveled to hearings held in Virginia and Colorado to voice their support for strong protections from toxic coal ash. Among the concerned residents have been college students, tribal members, faith leaders, physicians, and moms who agree with the sentiments expressed in an editorial in this weekend’s New York Times – “Coal ash is a national problem demanding a national response.”

Residents from Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Louisiana plan to testify before the EPA at the Dallas hearing from 10:00-12:00, 1:00-5:00 and 6:30-9:00 about the harmful effects of waste ponds filled with contaminated coal ash on human health and the environment in their neighborhoods and communities.  

GREAT VISUALS, including residents waving signs and blown-up photographs of local coal ash disposal sites.

Remaining hearings include:

-     Dallas, TX September 8
-     Charlotte, NC on September 14
-     Chicago, IL on September 16
-     Pittsburgh, PA on September 21
-     Louisville, KY on September 28

For more information about upcoming coal ash hearings at these sites, please contact David Graham-Caso at 858-945-2203 or visit www.sierraclub.org/coalash.

- # # # -