Stop I-3 Coalition Newsletter
November 1, 2006
Notes from the chair -- Voting is a right
Get out and vote!
I admit that I am a big fan of The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. The show does an excellent job of combining wisecracks with nuggets of news and truth. I was recently struck by one such nugget in a piece entitled “Hawk the Vote.” Dan Bakkedahl leads the piece with a remarkable and true statistic – the United States rank 139th in worldwide voter turnout, with only 48.3% of eligible voters in our country taking advantage of their right to vote. Pathetic!
The mission of the Stop I-3 Coalition is to preserve the integrity of our communities, mountains, lakes, streams and forests by preventing the construction of Interstate 3 or any similar highway in the Southern Appalachian and Piedmont Region. If you support that mission then I strongly encourage you to research the platforms of the candidates you have to choose from.
The Stop I-3 Coalition does not endorse or oppose any individual candidate, but we work hard to make the job of researching our federal, state and local politicians easier for you. This is done by providing you a Candidate Poll on our website at:
http://www.stopi3.org/candidates.html
To fully understand whether any politician is likely to support or oppose the construction of I-3 it is important to understand the history of this issue, not just the current statements of candidates as Election Day approaches. The Stop I-3 Coalition website provides news articles to help you there too. The articles date back to mid-2005, including an article from The Northeast Georgian that introduces some of the key policy makers involved in this issue – both those who support and oppose I-3. You can read that article at:
http://www.stopi3.org/news05/060305_NEG.html
The single most important action that you can take on November 7 is to cast your vote, thus making a statement about whom you want to see in charge of protecting our region’s resources and our quality of life.
-- Greg Kidd, Chairman
Nuclear Weapons Plans and Interstate 3
Our friends at the Nuclear Information and Resource Service office in Asheville, North Carolina, send word of two meetings, which could have important implications for the proposed Interstate 3. Those interested in this issue may find these nuclear weapons plans revealing -- and we encourage anyone who can get to Augusta or Oak Ridge to ask the Department of Energy what nuclear materials might be transported on I-3 if it is ever built, and whether DOE is involved as a proponent of the I-3 (and its companion interstate, I-14.) Coalition members and supporting organizations also can submit written comments or questions about nuclear transport in the region and how I-3 might be involved. Remember that the original proposed route for I-3 makes a direct connection between the Savannah River Site (outside Augusta, Georgia) and the Y-12 plant at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, as well as the nuclear-powered U.S. Navy craft that come to Savannah and the private nuclear-powered electricity generating facilities between Savannah and Augusta. The Port of Savannah also would be a locus of international traffic in radioactive material under the Global Nuclear Energy Partnership.
The following two meetings are being held by the Department of Energy to solicit comment on their planned expansion of the nuclear weapons complex and especially activity in the Southeast.
-- John Clarke, Stop I-3 board member
Thursday, November 9, at the North Augusta, South Carolina Community Center, 495 Brookside Avenue. Two sessions: 11 a.m. - 3 p.m., and 6-10 p.m.
Monday, November 13, at Oak Ridge (Tennessee) City Center Club Room, 333 Main Street. Two sessions: 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. and 6-10 p.m.
Written submissions also are possible. Details at
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/E6-17508.htm
http://a257.g.akamaitech.net/7/257/2422/01jan20061800/edocket.access.gpo.gov/2006/pdf/E6-17508.pdf
Bumper stickers available
Stop I-3 Coalition bumper stickers are still available from a dedicated
volunteer, Kathy Williams, for $1.00 per sticker. Contact
her at sauteewill@alltel.net,
or at 706.878.3349. This also is an excellent method of
keeping the issue in the public eye.
And some of our members have found that the eye-catching stickers are an excellent gift to friends and family living outside the I-3 corridors.
