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The Latest by Sam Edmondson

Campaign Manager

Sam Edmondson was a campaign manager on air toxics issues from 2010 until 2012. He helped organize the first 50 States United for Healthy Air event. His desire to work at an environmental organization came from the belief that if we don't do something to change our unsustainable ways, we are in big trouble.

February 17, 2011

In Dark House, A Few Lights Shine

By Sam Edmondson  /  Headquarters Office & Washington, D.C. Office

The U.S. House of Representatives is a dark place right now. Many of its Republican members are maniacally focused on dismantling scores of health and environmental protections, using a budget bill to stowaway anti-environmental amendments that would never get passed on their own. As Earthjustice’s Patti Goldman quipped: “Like fleas, they come with the dog, …

February 16, 2011

Americans and Congress Don't Breathe the Same Air

By Sam Edmondson  /  Headquarters Office, Policy and Legislation Team & Washington, D.C. Office

Many of our elected representatives in Congress just aren’t working for the will of the people. Right now, in direct opposition to the opinion of a large majority of Americans, these members of our government are putting in overtime to roll back important limits on air pollution coming from some of the worst industrial polluters …

February 15, 2011

Declare Your Right to Breathe

By Sam Edmondson  /  Headquarters Office & Washington, D.C. Office

Do you think that all Americans have the right to clean air? Then sign the Right to Breathe Declaration! The Clean Air Act—signed in 1970 by Pres. Nixon and improved upon in 1990 by George H.W. Bush—has benefitted millions of Americans in its 40-year history. Just last year, for example, clean air health protections helped …

February 14, 2011

Attorneys General Defend Our Right to Breathe

By Sam Edmondson  /  Headquarters Office & Washington, D.C. Office

Attorneys general from five states—New York, Maryland, Delaware, Massachusetts and Connecticut—sent a letter today to Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI), chairman of the House Energy & Commerce Committee, urging a rejection of Rep. John Carter’s (R-TX) resolution to block health protections against cement plants’ toxic air pollution. Led by Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman of New …

February 11, 2011

Doctors' Orders—America Needs Clean Air

By Sam Edmondson  /  Headquarters Office & Washington, D.C. Office

This week, nearly 2,000 health and medical professionals from all 50 states and the District of Columbia told our elected representatives at the White House and in Congress to stand up for clean air. These professionals are intimately familiar with the impacts of air pollution on people—asthma, heart disease, stroke, cancer—especially such vulnerable groups as …

February 10, 2011

#Right2Breathe Recap: What Saved 160,000 Lives in 2010?

By Sam Edmondson  /  Headquarters Office

(Clean air is a life saver, which is why Earthjustice is working to ensure that polluters don’t stand in the way of safeguards against air pollution. Here’s a round up of some recent news in the ongoing campaign to protect our Right to Breathe.) Use the #right2breathe hashtag on Twitter to track campaign updates. EPA chief Lisa Jackson …

February 9, 2011

Clean Air Means Health, Jobs for Americans

By Sam Edmondson  /  Headquarters Office & Washington, D.C. Office

EPA chief Lisa Jackson was on Capitol Hill today to testify before a subcommittee of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. On topic was a bill from Rep. Fred Upton, chairman of the committee, that would prevent the EPA from taking action on climate change. Lisa Jackson rightfully acknowledged in her opening statements, however, that …

February 8, 2011

Health, Economy Benefit From Limits On Power Plant Air Pollution

By Sam Edmondson  /  Headquarters Office & Washington, D.C. Office

Next month, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will propose the first ever health protections against power plants’ toxic air pollution. No industrial source of dirty air poses greater risks to human health or the environment than these juggernauts, which have never been subject to federal limits on their emissions of mercury, arsenic, acid gases and …

February 8, 2011

Trail Report: Pinnacles National Monument

By Sam Edmondson

A few hours south of San Francisco—and just east of the valley that was often Steinbeck's stage—are the reddened remains of an ancient volcano known as the Neenach.

February 7, 2011

NY and LA Times Call for Clean Air

By Sam Edmondson  /  Headquarters Office & Washington, D.C. Office

Over the weekend, the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times both ran editorials in defense of clean air. Set against the increasing number of congressional maneuvers to stymie the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and its popular programs for clean air, it is refreshing to see two of the nation’s largest newspapers take a …