Support BTNEP through the ESTUARIES Act

On June 12, the Enhancing Science, Treatment, and Upkeep of America’s Resilient and Important Estuarine Systems (ESTUARIES) Act was introduced to the Senate and House floors to reauthorize the National Estuary Program through 2031. The National Estuary Program (NEP) is a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency non-regulatory program established by Congress in 1987, under section 320 of the Clean Water Act, to protect and restore the water quality and ecological integrity of estuaries of national significance. Currently, there are 28 recognized estuaries in the U.S.

National Estuary Programs, like BTNEP, direct federal dollars to boots-on-the-ground efforts at the local level within some of the country’s most fragile yet diverse and thriving habitats. To ensure National Estuary Programs like BTNEP can continue their work, we need YOU to contact your senators and representatives and ask them to support the ESTUARIES Act! To find your congress members, please visit: https://www.congress.gov/members/find-your-member

To learn more about the EPA National Estuary Program, please visit: https://www.epa.gov/nep/overview-national-estuary-program

View the House bill: https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/3962/text

View the Senate bill: https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/2063/text

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Not sure where to start? Here’s a sample script to send to your Congress Members:

“[TITLE OF YOUR CONGRESS MEMBER], I’m writing to ask that you support the Enhancing Science, Treatment, and Upkeep of America’s Resilient and Important Estuarine Systems (ESTUARIES) Act (House Bill (H.R.3962), Senate Bill (S.2063)) that was introduced on the House and Senate Floors on June 12th, and is co-sponsored by Louisiana Senator Bill Cassidy.

This bill would reauthorize the EPA’s National Estuary Program through 2031, ensuring that estuaries of national significance continue to receive federal support. This bill directly affects our home as the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary Program (BTNEP), one of the 28 National Estuary Programs, is the state’s only National Estuary Program, and encompasses the 4.2 million-acre region between the Mississippi and Atchafalaya Rivers. The federal funding BTNEP receives enables local professionals and organizations to undertake the crucial work necessary to preserve and restore the irreplaceable landscape, culture, and people of the estuary.

[HERE’S A GREAT SPACE TO TELL YOUR PERSONAL “WHY” THE ESTUARY IS IMPORTANT TO YOU!]

I ask that you support the ESTUARIES Act to ensure the future of the Barataria-Terrebonne National Estuary and all of the other estuaries of the nation, so we can continue to call this great state home for many generations to come. Thank you for your consideration.”