Save the Milwaukee River

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Our Milwaukee River is at a critical turning point. Here's how you can help. First and foremost, thank you so much to the thousands of volunteers who participated in our 20th Spring River Cleanup last Saturday. Details and photos from this event are coming soon, so stay tuned! The Spring River Cleanup is our biggest volunteer event of the year, and today we're writing to ask for your support in our biggest fight of the decade - removal of the Estabrook Dam. But let me be clear – this isn’t our fight to win, it’s the Milwaukee River’s. If this dam isn’t removed now, the river will suffer for decades. That's why today, Earth Day, we're launchingsavethemilwaukeeriver.com. As you probably know, the Estabrook Dam is a dangerous, dilapidated structure, and since a court ruling in 2012 declared it a public nuisance, the County’s only options are removal of the dam or repair. The County's latest position is repair. This will cost taxpayers over $5 million (over $3 million more than the cost of removal), and will jeopardize the health and recovery of the Milwaukee River for decades. It’s a terrible idea and it hurts all of us, our river most of all. This is a now or never moment in this fight, and I’m asking you to stand up in vocal support of the effort to remove the Estabrook Dam. Here are three things you can do right now, and they'll take less than 5 minutes. Please visit savethemilwaukeeriver.com and add your name to the petition calling for full removal of the Estabrook Dam. While you’re there, send your County Supervisor a noteand make sure to visit the Learn More page. You'll get all the facts on why the dam is an environmental hazard that pollutes our water, jeopardizes the health of the Milwaukee River and is a fiscal nightmare. Follow along on Facebook and Twitter. You’ll be kept up-to-date on all information pertaining to the dam, including action alerts and you-heard-it-here-first news. Tell your friends and family! Invite them to take action on the website, follow along onFacebook and Twitter, and repost and retweet. This is a once in a generation opportunity to help our Milwaukee River. As the founder of Earth Day, Aldo Leopold,  wisely said:  “A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.” Removal of the dam is the right thing to do. It’s now or never - if this dam is rebuilt, we’re stuck with it for decades. Our river will suffer and we’ll all pay the price. Please help remove this dam by showing your support of the Milwaukee River today. Thank you, as always, for all you do.

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