Tell the Army Corps of Engineers to Defend the Gulf!

For far too long the Gulf of Mexico has been a sacrifice zone to fossil fuels. Communities on the Gulf coast face some of the highest rates of pollution, poverty, and extraction – and are also hit year after year by climate fueled super storms.

The Gulf was the first place that President Biden sold out when he reneged on his promise to end fossil fuel leasing on public lands and waters. And the same climate profiteers – Exxon, BP, Enbridge and others – are racing to build a new generation of dirty projects. If approved, these new pipelines, oil and gas terminals, and plastics plants will fuel even more climate disasters and further pollute the most vulnerable black, indigenous, and low income communities in America. 

Frontline communities across the Gulf South and around the globe are calling on President Biden’s administration to take urgent action to prevent further climate disaster and build restorative justice. And that action can start with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE).

Sign on to our letter to the USACE asking them to transform our systems for survival in this climate crisis, instead of helping oil, gas, and plastics corporations to push forward with their deadly plans.

We have come together to remind the USACE of values to uphold “loyalty, duty, respect, selfless service, honor, integrity, and personal courage” and their creed “to always serve the Nation.” The USACE should not just adapt to climate change but stop contributing to the root causes. Following the leadership of black, indigenous and frontline leaders in the Gulf, we’re asking for USACE leaders to:

1. Conduct a regional Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement of the cumulative impacts of petrochemical facilities and infrastructure across the Gulf South
2. Meet with frontline community leaders to have a consultation of the permitting plans and join them a tour of the frontline communities across the Gulf South
3. Uphold environmental, restorative, and language justice in their work.

It is vital that the USACE act on these demands immediately. There are currently more than 20 new fossil fuel projects proposed in and around the Gulf of Mexico. Allowing even one of them to be built would doom President’ Biden’s climate goals to achieve “net Zero” global warming pollution by 2050. But, to add insult to injury, the USACE does not even consider the projects cumulative impacts. Doing so allows fossil fuel companies to get away with poisoning more people, make bigger profits, and hide the racism and climate-denial of their business in plain sight. Tell the USACE to take action now!

Join us today and sign this letter by December 7 so we can include your name in a delivery to USACE leaders this month.

PS – If you’re part of an organization or affinity group that wants to sign on to the letter, click here for more information & our social media toolkit.